effigy portraits, in
1394.

Another good English bronze is that of Richard Beauchamp at Warwick,
the work of Thomas Stevens, which has been alluded to. In Westminster
Abbey, the effigy of Aymer de Valence, dating from 1296, is of
copper, but it is not cast; it is of beaten metal, and is enamelled,
probably at Limoges.

Bells and cannon are among the objects of actual utility which
were cast in bronze. Statues as a rule came later. In the sixteenth
and seventeenth centuries in England, bronze was used to such an
extent, that one authority suggested that it should be called the
"Age of Bronze." Primitive bells were made of cast iron riveted
together: one of these is at the Cologne museum, and the Irish bells
were largely of this description. A great bell was presented to the
Cathedral of Chartres in 1028, by a donor named Jean, which affords
little clue to his personality. This bell weighed over two tons.

There is considerable interest attaching to the subject of the
making of bells in the Middle Ages. Even in domestic life bells
played quite a part; it was the custom to ring a bell when the
bath was ready and to announce meals, as well as to summon the
servitors. Church bells, both large and small, were in use in England
by 670, according to Bede. They were also carried by missionaries;
those good saints, Patrick and Cuthbert, announced their coming
like town criers! The shrine of St. Patrick's bell has been already
described. Bells used to be regarded with a superstitious awe, and
were supposed to have the ability to dispel evil spirits, which were
exorcised with "bell, book, and candle." The bell of St. Patrick,
inside the great shrine, is composed of two pieces of sheet iron,
one of which forms the face, and being turned over the top, descends
about half-way down the other side, where it meets the second sheet.
Both are bent along the edges so as to form the sides of the bell,
and they are both secured by rivets. A rude handle is similarly
attached to the top.

A quaint account is given by the Monk of St. Gall
about a bell ordered by Charlemagne. Charlemagne having admired
the tone of a certain bell, the founder, named Tancho, said to
him: "Lord Emperor, give orders that a great weight of copper be
brought to me that I may refine it, and instead of tin give me as
much silver as I need,--a hundred pounds at least,--and I will
cast such a bell for you that this will seem dumb in comparison
to it." Charlemagne or