There are several different types of the historical ship's bell. Uses of the ship's bell on active vessels include: time keeping, religious ceremonies, and sounding alarms. The ship's bell is respected as a nautical decoration because of its historic and traditional significance. Nautical home décor ship bells can come as brass or even chrome. Ship bells are strongly tied to the nautical culture, as you can see by the number of ship bell nautical decorations available today.

What's more, the ship's bell serves to alarm the crew in cases of emergency or drill practices onboard. The ship bell's penetrating sound proved to be capable of quickly capturing the crew's attention. Also, in the case of a fire, the ships bell was rung hard and loud for five straight seconds. The next few rings were important in telling the location of the fire. One ring meant the fire was at the front of the ship; two rings meant it was in the center; and three rings meant the fire was in the rear.

Prior to the chronometer being invented there was a need to keep accurate time while out at sea. The ship's bell worked in conjunction with a half-hour glass to accomplish this task. The time keeper struck the ship bell whenever the hour glass reached a half-hour mark. Completion of a full hour called for the ship's bell to be rung twice. Two bell strikes were added on for every hour after the first. The ringing of the ship bell in this way went on throughout the watchman's four hour shift. The United States Navy's daily routine uses the ship's bell in the same way.

It eventually became mandated that all ships sound their bell when passing through low visibility situations to keep other ships from running into them. Notifying other ships in the vicinity was done by loudly ringing the ship's bell. As part of the maritime law, it was required for all commissioned ships have a ship's bell on board when sailing. In the Revolutionary War, the settlers were introduced to the same functions of the ship bell as used by the English. The USS Constitution, the oldest surviving ship in American history, had been fixed with a 242 pound bell.

The unintended effect of one of the ship bell's standard uses led to one of the American Navy's greatest sea victories during the War of Independence. The Jamaica Fleet, lost in fog, did what they were supposed to do by sounding their ship bells, but instead led the Americans directly to their position. When the Americans heard the bell, they were able to blindside the Jamaica fleet which would end up becoming their biggest prize catch of the War of Independence. As the biggest prize catch of the war, the amount of cargo seized amounted to roughly one million dollars.

The history behind the ship's bell makes it a perfect candidate for a nautical decoration. Many online nautical decoration stores have authentic ship bells for sale. Because of the aforementioned historical and traditional significance behind the ship's bell, it deserves a place in any dedicated collector's nautical decor collection.

The Ship's Bell's Rise To The Top
Ship's Bell - The Most Popular Beach Decor Item?
Ship's Bell - Who Knew?

While it may not be fair, the battles that come to the ordinary person's mind when thinking of the American Civil War are most likely not the nautical battles that were fought. Even though this is the case, the battles fought at sea were a major part of the civil war. The design of these civil war ships signaled a transition in naval architectural and technological development. Civil war ships today are greatly admired as prolific American naval architecture improvements, and are admired by nautical enthusiasts as well. For this reason there are plenty of civil war replicas for sale both online and off.

The following are some key aspects to look for when searching for civil war replicas from online and offline ship model retailers. How does the price of the ship model correlate to the quality of the civil war replica? Searching online you will be able to find several civil war replicas for low prices. In order to do so, you must be able to know what it is you are looking for in detail.

The model design is the next thing to look at when shopping for civil war replicas. While price is something to look at, the civil war replicas of high quality will have some or all of these attributes: handmade by master craftsmen, 3D modeled for accuracy, and/or manufactured in a top of the line factory.

Consider the shipping and packaging methods when choosing which civil war replicas to buy. Many model ship retailers will have their own shipping handler of choice, such as UPS, Federal Express, US Postal Service, or DHL shipping. Try to find out if the model ship retailer you are shopping with does international shipping as well, as this will give you a clue as to the size and dedication of the company. Discover the safeguards in place for securing your model ship purchase during shipping. For example, a decent shipping safety precaution is to package model ships in Styrofoam, secured in a wooden crate so it doesn't move, and covered by more Styrofoam.

The H.L. Hunley is an example of an authentic civil war replica. At twenty-four inches in length, three inches in width, and two inches in height, the H.L. Hunley is a nice sized civil war replica. Its narrow measurements remain faithful to the original war ship's design.

The Harriet Lane is another authentic civil war replica, and it measures thirty-two inches in length, eight inches in width, and fifteen inches in height. Civil war replicas such as the Harriet Lane are indicative of the high quality ship models available.


Despite the view of the civil war's battles, the nautical side is still admired; especially by model ship collectors. Many authentic civil war replicas await you online. By knowing the key aspects to look for in recognizing high quality model ships, you should be able to find the best civil war replicas available. Following these tips will lead you to the most authentic civil war replicas online.

What Really Made The Difference In The Civil War?
Civil War Replicas - A True Time Machine
True Civil War Replicas

Ship bells come in several different forms. Timekeeping, ceremonial routines, and sounding the alarm are just a few of the historic uses for the ship bell. The ship bell is a great nautical decor item because of its long affair with the nautical culture. Chrome and brass are what most ship bells are made out of. The ship bell is a significant part of nautical culture, and remains a symbol of tradition to this day.

In the years before the invention of the chronometer, it was necessary for the crew aboard a ship to keep accurate time somehow. A half-hour glass was used first for this purpose. Whenever the hour-glass was turned over, the ship bell was sounded to signal the start of the next half-hour. The ship bell was struck twice after completion of a full hour. Every hour after that saw two additional bell strikes added on. The process went like this until the end of the watchman's four hour shift, after which the process began all over again. This type of ship bell is even used today for the United States Navy's daily routine.

Religious ceremonies aboard the ship also involve the ship bell. The start of this tradition is traced to the British Royal Navy's traditional practice of baptizing children under the ship bell. Commonly, the ship bell would also be used as a christening bowl for the ceremonial proceedings. The inside of the ship bell housed the names of the recently baptized children. This is a significant religious ceremonial practice held by the Royal Navy at the time. At the end of the ship bell's life, it would be stored in the Department of the Navy. Ship bells have an even more religious background, as sometimes these types of ship bells would be loaned to churches. However, in modern times these bells are stored with municipalities or museums instead.

The ship bell's historical and traditional significance is what attracts many model ship customers. Without a ship bell to decorate a nautical room, the model ship/nautical decor collection just doesn't feel complete. Model ship bells come in many types as well. For example, some of the different varieties include: brass hand bells, bracket bells, anchor bells, aluminum ship bells, chrome bells, and much more.

The ship bell played an important role in the traditions of both the British and American navies. These types of ship bells still play important roles in our navies today. The military is very conservative, and steeped in traditions, so the routines of using the ship bell doesn't seem like it will fade away anytime soon.

Decorating With A Ship Bell
Never Sail Without A Ship Bell
Never Sail Without A Ship Bell

The ship bell is a part of the nautical culture that is rooted deeply in tradition. The founding principles of the ships bell were: keeping order, warning other ships and crew, timekeeping, sounding alarms, and for religious uses. To this day, the United States Navy recognizes the significance of the ships bell.

The Bronze Age saw the introduction of the first metal ships bell. China was one of the first countries that learned how to make high quality ship bells from metal. Among the first time that a ships bell was recorded in use was aboard the British Ship Grace Dieu in 1485. "Wache bells" were what the bells aboard this ship were called.

It eventually became mandated that all ships use their bells in times of heavy fog in order to warn other ships of their presence. The loudness of the bell cut through the fog to warn other ships in the area. It eventually became maritime law that all boats have a functioning ships bell at all times. During the Revolutionary War, the revolutionaries adopted the same practices as the British in regards to the ships bell. The ships bell aboard the USS Constitution (the oldest surviving ship in America) weighed approximately 242 pounds.

It was the ships bell that led to one of the American Navy's greatest sea victories during the War of Independence. This was due to the Jamaica Fleet using their ships bells, as they were supposed to, while sailing blindly through fog, unintentionally giving away their position to the Americans. The battle resulted in an American victory, and the largest catch during the War of Independence. The Americans captured one million dollars' worth of prizes and cargo from the Jamaica Fleet in this huge victory. Find more beach decor of this type here.

Also, the ships bell is an invaluable part of keeping the crew on their toes in cases of emergency. The loudness of the ships bell is critical to getting the crew's attention. In case of fire, the ships bell was rung for five seconds, as hard and as loud as possible. The next few rings told the location of the fire. One ring meant the fire was in the front; two rings meant the fire was in the center; three rings meant the fire was at the back of the boat.

The uses of the ships bell in modern times is still for: keeping time, alarming crew, and for ceremonial purposes. The Naval Historical Center houses many recovered US Navy ship bells. Sometimes ship bells are loaned to ships on a historical quest, or to museums seeking to display and/or research them. The ship bell's use is profoundly prolific, and it still rings loud and true even to this day. Whenever one thinks of a ship, it is hard to imagine it without a ship bell.

The proud history of the ships bell affords it to be a highly sought after nautical decoration. You can find many authentic ship bells at online model ship retailers. It goes without saying that a nautical decoration collection isn't complete without one or two authentic ship bells.

You can maintain your blog by logging in to your Bravenet account. Once you are logged in you can customize the layout, colors, and features. In addition, you can add your own links, edit your profile, add your friends, and change many other options to personalize your blog.

Once you begin using your blog, you can view statistics in your members area to see how many people are reading your blog as well as where they come from.

We hope you enjoy your Blog. Be sure to tell all your friends about this great new service from Bravenet!