Les van den Ghein fondeurs de cloches, canons, sonnettes et mortiers, à Malines by Dr. G. Van Doorslaer
(English Translation) File-02 – Pages 100 to 206
This document is provided for you by The Whiting Society of Ringers visit www.whitingsociety.org.uk for the full range of publications and articles about bells and change ringing 100 PETRUS VAN DEN GHEIN ME FECIT M D LXVIII.
It rang the note la and weighed 10.2 kg. Its diameter was 0.019m.
1569. (14, see annexes).
A bell, whose inscriptions have not been preserved, was founded by Peter van den Ghein, in 1569, for the Saint-Jacob church in Antwerp.
It had been offered by the parishioners and had been consecrated to Saint Hendrick. We know, however, that it was adorned with the Coat of Arms of the Chief Church Warden, the Knight Hendrick van Berchem.
The accounts of the church mention, on the same date, that a bell, called "franche clocke", weighing 990 pounds, was flawed and it was sent to Mechelen for redesign. They did not manage to agree with the founder on the conditions of work. Expenses made on this occasion, at the Gulden Hoot Inn, rose to 7 sous and 10 ½ deniers. Resolved to dispense with the good offices of van den Ghein, agents of the Saint-Jacob church travelled Mechelen, but failed to find a bell that gave the desired sound. They returned to van den Ghein and finally came to an agreement. The founder then signed a contract, by which he undertook to recast the cracked bell. The transformed bell weighed six pounds more than the first, and the founder received for his work the sum of 11 pounds 7 escalins and 3 deniers: a rate of 15 deniers per hundred pounds. Once in place, the bell was set to the exact tone by
101 van den Ghein, and it was connected to the clock. In this last job, he was assisted by the clockmaker from Mechelen, Master Jan who was, without doubt, his usual collaborator, Jan Ingels.
1569. (21, 22).
In Hoorn, Holland, in the bell tower of the church of Sainte- Marie, hangs a bell carrying, in Roman capitals, the inscription:
PETER VAN DEN GHEIN HEFT MI GHEGOTEN INT JAER M CCCCC LXIX.
It measures 0.44m in diameter and is decorated with three medallions, one of which represents St. Michael slaying the dragon, the other, Susanna and the Elders; the third, the Nativity of Jesus.
1570. (23)
The church Saint-Servais of the municipality of Bergh, province of Brabant, district of Brussels, still possesses a bell bearing the inscription:
PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN HEEFT MY GEGOTEN M CCCCC LXX
It measures 0.39m high and 0.35m in diameter.
1570. (23)
In Nederockerzeel, province of Brabant, district of Brussels, still exists, at the Saint-Etienne church, a small bell bearing the inscription:
PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN HEEFT MY GHEGOTEN M CCCCC LXX. 102 1573.
A bell bearing the date of 1573, cast by Peter van den Ghein, is still in the carillon of the city of Arnemuiden, Holland. It probably comes from the carillon of the convent of Roosendael, in Waelhem, bought by the city of Arnemuiden in 1582 and completed in 1583, with 9 new bells. (See later).
1574.
In Holland, the church of Oude Tonge, in the island of Goeree, still owns a bell by Peter van den Ghein, adorned with two medallions 1.
1580. (14)
Among the bells which, in 1597, existed in Madrid and which were discovered by the Antwerp artist Jehan L'Hermite, one finds several Mechelen bells. They were collected by S. M. Le Roi in Lisbon, during the troubles of the Low Countries, and transported to these places. (See Peter van den Ghein I, 1547).
The carillon of the Church of St. Lawrence, in Madrid, possessed several, dating from 1580; here is the statement: (1) A bell of medium size, bearing the arms of the city of Mechelen and the inscription:
PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN HEEFT MY GEGOTEN M CCCCC LXXX.
(2) A bell of a large size, bore the same inscription, only the letters of the vintage differ: M D LXXX.
1 This information comes from Mr. Overvoorde in Leiden. 103 (3) A bell decorated with the effigy of the king, and on which we read:
BEN ICK VAN PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN GEGOTEN M CCCCC LXXX.
(4) A bell with the inscription:
JHESUS. BEN ICK VAN PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN GEGOTEN. M CCCCC LXXX.
1583. (14)
Other bells reported again by Jehan L'Hermite in 1597, in Madrid and dating from 1583: (1) A small bell bearing the inscription:
MARIA. BEN ICK VAN PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN GEGOTEN. M CCCCC LXXXIII.
(2) Another with the inscription:
ANNA. BEN ICK VAN PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN GEGOTEN INT JAER M D LXXXIII.
1583.
After the new tower of the Arnemuiden church, in Holland, was completed, the Magistrate of the municipality resolved, as evidenced by the municipal accounts of the date of July 31, 1582, to buy from an Antwerp merchant, named Arnold van Thuyl, the clock and the bells which had served in the "voorslag" of the convent of Roosendael
104 at Waelhem, near Mechelen, and whose seller became the buyer after the surrender of the city of Mechelen. The contract was concluded at the price of 75 livres and 50 f.
In 1583, the municipal administration of Arnemuiden addressed the Mechelen founder to arrange and complete the chime. He delivered nine new bells with a total weight of 4674 pounds and at the same time 2 pairs of pannes, which raised the weight to 4713 1/2 pounds. This supply earned him 6 florins per 100 pounds of weight.
Jan Ingels, the clever Mechelen clockmaker, who was the usual collaborator of van den Ghein for the installation of bells, was charged with regulating the mechanism of the clock and the "voorslag" for the sum of 125 florins, for which he had to supply all the accessories, such as 200 pimples to puncture the drum, hammers, threads, needles, etc. The costs of his stay and that of his work remained the responsibility of the city. After the work was done, he received another 33 pounds 3 escalins 4 deniers for the extra work.
Fearing that the tower was too weak to receive the unplanned weight of the bells and the clock mechanism, the municipal administration resolved, on August 25th 1583, to consolidate it. The former "voorslag" of the convent of Roosendael, therefore received a profound reorganization and complement. This chime of Arnemuiden moved after 1859 to the current tower and consists of 21 bells, the largest of which was cast in 1518, by Peter Waghevens, from Mechelen. The other 20 bells came from the van den Ghein workshops; one of them dates from 1553, 8 others from 1554, one from 1556, one of 1573 and the last nine from 1583. We have discussed these earlier.
105 1583. (24, 25, see annexes).
In the course of this year, the magistrate of Mechelen ordered from the foundry, the supply of the 19th and the 20th bell for the carillon in the tower of Saint Rombout. At the same time the founder was charged with the redesign of the 4 smaller bells, which were of the wrong tone. The Mechelen clockmaker, Jan Ingels, did the work connecting the hammers to the clock mechanism. These bells were sold in 1680 to the church builders of Our Lady beyond the Dyle, in Mechelen, from where they passed into the hands of revolutionaries at the end of the eighteenth century, who turned them into cannons.
1585. (1, see annexes).
The church of Saint Jan, in Mechelen, had been stripped, in 1576, of its three bells, at the request of Rogier Lestannier, artillery clerk, with the promise of restitution of the metal. No doubt these were used for the casting of cannons, which were very necessary in those troubled times. Restitution was not until 15961, but in the mean time by an agreement concluded on August 30th of this year, the churchwardens of Saint Jan’s Church charged the founder to deliver two new bells. They were baptized on September 8th following; a priest and the sacristan of the parish of St. Peter each received two sous for their
1 Municipal accounts, 1596-1597, fo213 r°. Paid to the churchwardens of St Jan’s 200 guilders for the removal of 3 bells by Mr Rogier Lestannier, commissioner of the Artillery Corps made in the year 1576. The churchwardens promise to have them replaced with bells of the same weight of material, to be verified at the town weigh-house, following the restitution. c [Signed] Churchwardens and the above...... ij lb 106 assistance. The founder received for the re-melting of the old metal, 2 sous per pound; the new material, supplied and cast, was paid at the rate of 18 florins per hundred pounds.
One of these bells was destroyed in 1797. It bore the inscription:
Upper: PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN HEEFT MY GEGOTEN INT JAER 1585.
Lower: JOANNES EVANGELIST.
The other was saved and still hangs in the church tower of Saint Jan. It measures 0.05m in height and 0.60m in diameter. Its weight is about 130 kg. It rings a note a little above fa♮. It bears the following inscription, preceded by the shield of Mechelen:
JAN BAPTISTE BEN IC VAN PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN GHEGOTEN M Vc LXXXV.
It is decorated, around the shoulder with a frieze, of which
Frieze on the bell of St Jan’s Church, Mechelen, cast by Peter II in 1585.
107 the repeating pattern is 0.14m long and 0.05m high. This one consists of a basin, standing in the middle, which is held on both sides by two grotesque winged characters, and whose body ends in scrollwork. The repetition of the motif is separated by a candelabrum. The reproduction of this frieze is above. Under the frieze aligns the inscription and, below it, 3 medallions, alternating with 3 winged angel heads, from which are suspended, with triple cords from their mouths, elegant cartouches. This last pattern is found on the bell of 1566, by Jan van den Ghein II, and also on another, from 1610, cast by Peter van den Ghein III, which will be discussed later, and where we will see a reproduction.
The first medallion is identical to the medal of Philip II, reported on the bell of 1566 by Jan van den Ghein II; it is also found on that of 1610, by Peter van den Ghein III.
The second medallion, a little oblong, of 0.070m by 0.065m represents the Last Supper.
The third, of an octagonal shape, has a diameter of 0.055m; the subject has lost its clarity but we can vaguely see a character or standing child holding an animal in the right hand. Across the bare chest passes a shoulder strap. Could it be the representation of Saint Jan the Baptist, to whom the bell is dedicated?
1586. (16)
A bell in the municipality of Tielrode, province of Western Flanders, cracked in 1727 and refurbished the following year, by Alexis Julien of Lierre, bore the inscription:
PEETER, BEN ICK VAN PEETER VAN GHEIN GEGOTEN INT JAER M CCCCC LXXXVI. THIELRODE.
108 1586. (See annexes)
The municipal accounts of Mechelen make mention of the redesign of two pannes for the big bell of the church of St. Rombout. For the work, the founder was paid the sum of 23 florins 15 sous.
1588. (1)
A bell, 0.35m high and 0.425m wide, exists still in the turret of the Our Lady hospital, Mechelen. It bears the inscription:
PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN HEFT MI GHEGOTEN INT JAER M D LXXXVIII.
Below, we read these words:
CAMPANA SANCTI SPIRITUS DIVI RUMOLDI.
Which means: bell of the table of the Holy Spirit of St. Rombout. This is where it served previously. The ornamentation of this bell consists of a circular frieze around the shoulder, with a height of 0.033m, whose motif consists of two flowering stems, in all respects similar to those on the frieze of the bell of Jan van den Ghein II, cast in 1570 and suspended in the same turret.
Below the frieze is the inscription with letters about 2 cm high and enclosed, on either side by a double net. Lower down, in contact with the nets, 3 decorative motifs, one of which is formed by a double eagle; the other by a shell of 0.055m by 0.06m, in which sits a character, alongside whom are two angels; the third with a medal of 0.06m in diameter
109
which represents a chariot dragged by horses, led by a man standing, behind which are two or three seated characters.
1589. (1)
The church wardens of St. Jan's Church in Mechelen made the acquisition from Peter van den Ghein of a bell baptised with the name of Jan and weighing 1273 pounds: It bore the inscription:
JOANNES BEN IC: PEETER VAN DEN GHEYN HEEFT MY GEGOTEN IN T JAER 1589.
The bell cost 381 florins, which was collected from among the parishioners. It no longer exists today.
1590. (1, see annexes).
Two bells had been cast before 10th April in this year, for the church of Bornhem, province of Antwerp. The settlement of the account caused difficulties. One of the bells with pannes weighed 1601 pounds, for which the price was 350 florins, which should, under contract, be paid. It had been held by the founder, no doubt because the payment was overdue. Tired of waiting, and wanting to get rid of it, the founder laid the bell in front of the door of his house and, on August 31st of this year, he obtained permission from the magistrate to sell the bell at the risk of those concerned at Bornhem.
The settlement of this dispute was not over by 1593, since on June 26th of that year, the citizens of Bornhem, cited by Peter van den Ghein, were found guilty by default for the costs plus tax at 27 florins. 110
1591. (26. T. II, see annexes).
The carillon delivered in 1539, by Médard Waghevens, at the town of Aalst, province of East Flanders, was supplemented in this year with five new bells, from the moulds of Peter van den Ghein. They were placed in the play of bells by Gilles Alicourt, the carillonneur of Aalst. In 1714, the whole carillon was taken over by Jan Pauwels, founder of bells in Ghent, and responsible for the casting of a new set of 35 bells.
1591. (21)
The municipality of Oudorp, Holland, had, in the last century, a bell bearing the inscription:
St LAURENS BEN IC VAN PEETER VAN DEN GHEYN GEGOOTEN INT JAER ONZES HEEREN M CCCCC LXXXXI.
1593. (27, see annexes)
A large carillon bell from Veere, Holland, measuring 1.47m in diameter and 0.90m high, bore the inscription:
TE MECHELEN DUEVERSTE PORTE HEFT MI PEETER VAN GHEIN GEGHOTEN ENDE NIET VERDROTEN INT JAER ONS HEEREN M CCCCC LXXXXIII. VERE FIDELIS CAMPT (Coat of Arms of the City) OM EEN GOET VEER.
It is likely that this bell is the one that is mentioned in an annotation of the accounts of the treasurer, in 1591, paying the sum of 556 pounds 5 escalins 7 gros, for different 111
work related to the carillon, and in which are included a big bell of 7257 pounds weight and also 20 bells intended to form a set, to be placed in the new tower of the city hall. All of these bells with "cimbaele" (?), intended for a bell that had to ring, weighed 10,704 pounds.
In the municipal accounts, in 1596, is noted the provision of a new clock, for the tower of the city hall, by the clockmaker of Mechelen, Jan Ingels. Most of these bells were recast, in 1735, by Peter van den Gheyn, from Leuven.
1593. (See annexes)
The priest and the wardens of the church of Contich, province of Antwerp, had brought an action against Peter van den Ghein, for payment of 61 florins. By sentence of the magistrate of Mechelen, dated 28th August 1593, the founder was ordered to pay the sum of 20 florins, in addition to the outstanding amount of 61 florins. This is probably for the re- casting of an old bell.
1593. (28)
By act of January 18, 1593, the municipal authority of the city of Leuven, sold to Peter van den Ghein, founder in Mechelen, a cracked 100-pound bell, which was at the tower of St. Peter. This sale took place at the price of 19 Rhine florins and 10 sols.
The act is followed by a letter from van den Ghein, dated 9th February following, from which it follows that the bell is in the nave of the church to be transported to its destination.
------
112 Annexes.
113
114
115
116
------Hendrick
His beginnings as a founder seem to go back to the year 1588. His death, which occurred in 1602, ended his career hastily. Three bells coming out of his foundry are reported: the first, from 1595, at Mechelen; the second, from 1598 to Huldenberg, and the third from 1599 to Antwerp.
The small number of known works, of which only 2 mortars have survived, are because of his name not being widespread. This, however, is not enough to explain an error, noted in an exhibition catalogue at the hotel Gruuthuuse, in Bruges, in 1905, in which one of the mortars, exhibited by the Archaeological Society of that city, is presented with this inscription:
HENNEKIN VAN DEN GHEIN ME FECIT MCCCCC LXXXXVII. 117
when in reality we could read HENDERIC and not HENNEKIN.
We have not seen any of his bells so we confine ourselves, therefore to report them.
1595. (See annexes)
The accounts of the church of Saint Rombout in Mechelen mention the payment of 143 florins, made to Hendrick van den Ghein, for a 358-pound bell, at the rate of 8 sous per pound. It was destined to be suspended in the small tower. At the same time, he had provided the two pannes, weighing 11 pounds in total, at the agreed price, altogether 4 flor. 8 sous.
1598. (29, 1905, p 103).
There was formerly in the bell tower of the church of Huldenberg, Province of Brabant, a bell bearing the inscription:
HENDRICK VAN DEN GHEYN HEEFT MY GEGOTEN INT JAER ONS HEEREN 1598. SINT NICLAES TOT HULDENBERG.
1599.
A bell from the St. Elisabeth Hospital in Antwerp, named "Ihesus", weighing 199 pounds, was recast by Hendrick van den Ghein, in 1599. The old bell was estimated too thin and too light, the new one weighed 280 pounds. The work of the founder, for the redesign of the old one, was paid at the rate of two sous per pound, the new metal added again was paid at 8 sous per pound.
118 For the whole operation, with the six sous due for transport by boat, he was paid 52 florins, 12 sous.
Hendrick van den Ghein guaranteed his work without defects for a year. Hendrick Bernaerts, founder of copper in Antwerp, was made guarantor for van den Ghein.1 The bell no longer exists today, and may have been destroyed in the cataclysm that the steeple underwent during a famous hurricane, having raged on the second day of Easter of the year 1606 2. Annexes.
1 Hendrick Bernaerts was originally from Mechelen. 2 We warmly thank our colleague Mr. Edm. Geudens, who very kindly informed us about everything that concerns this bell, which he made known in his study on "The Hospital of St. Elisabeth of Antwerp", published in the Annals of the Royal Academy of Archaeology of Belgium, 1896. 119
------Peter III
He started, as we said when talking about Peter II, before his father's death. His career ended with his own death, in 1618.
Despite the small number of known works, however, it appears clear that his technical knowledge had a real value and that he was very appreciated as an acoustician.
Indeed, we still find his bells abroad, in Holland and England. In Monikkendam, Holland, there is still the carillon, designed by him in 1595. That of Mechelen, at the church of Notre- Dame, unfortunately no longer exists. He also worked at the carillon in the Saint Rombout tower in this city.
The ornamentation of his bells is similar to that of his predecessors.
As for the inscriptions, they are generally in Flemish. Twice, in 1595, he makes an exception to this rule, returning to the old custom of using beautiful
120 Latin formulas. Later still, in 1610, he makes a return to the old Flemish formulas.
1595. (18, 22).
In the tower of the old council house in Monikkendam, in Holland, is still preserved a very melodious carillon, the work of Peter van den Ghein. The bell used to ring the half-hour, measures 0.90m in diameter and bears the inscription in Roman capitals:
VIVOS o VOCO o DEFUNCTOS o PLANGO o FULGURA o FRANGO o VOX o MEA o VOX o VITAE o VOCO o VOS o AD o SACRA o VENITE o GEGOTEN o INT JAER o ONS o HEREN o M o CCCCC o XCV o PETER o VAN o DEN o GHEIN o HEFT o MI o GEGOTEN o
This Latin inscription which is identical to the one on a bell that he provided in the same year, at the church of Our Lady in Mechelen, and which undoubtedly comes from his hands, enables us to ascribe this bell to Peter III.
Apart from this one, there is still a big bell, ringing the hour, made by Thomas Roth, and 16 other bells forming a carillon and bearing the name of Peeter van den Ghein, with the vintages of 1595 and 1596.
1595. (1, 2, 3, see appendices).
The churchwardens of the Our Lady beyond the Dyle, in Mechelen, bought from Peter van den Ghein the younger, a bell named "Gabriel", weighing 1641 pounds, and with pannes, 1669 pounds. In exchange, he received the bell "Anna", weighing 976 pounds, which had to be removed from the play of bells, because its tone was not in agreement
121 with the other bells. So he had to charge, at the rate of 38 florins per hundred pounds, the value of 693 pounds. Van den Ghein's wife was not forgotten in this negotiation. She received on her behalf a piece of cloth worth 6 florins 6 sous.
1595. (1, 2, 3).
On October 20th of this year, the wardens of the same church, in Mechelen, bought from van den Ghein, the younger, a new bell named "Hendrick", whose weight was 1280 pounds. It bore the inscription:
DEFUNCTOS PLANGO, VOCO VIVOS, FULGURA FRANGO, VOX MEA, VOX VITAE, VOCO VOS AD SACRA VENITE.
He was paid at the same price of 38 florins per hundred pounds, as for the previous one.
1596. (21).
The municipality of Follega, Holland, has a bell bearing the inscription:
PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN HEFT MI GHEGOTEN INT JAER M CCCCC XCVI.
1597.
The Churchwardens of the church of Our Lady beyond the Dyle, in Mechelen, buy again, in 1597, a bell of 828 pounds, named “Anna”, and in addition, pannes of 20 pounds weight. The price is still 38 florins per one hundred pounds. His wife was once again rewarded with a piece of cloth, the value of which was 3 florins 3 sous. 122 1597. (1)
A new bell was delivered by this founder to the church of Saint Jan, Mechelen. It weighed 800 pounds. It did not match the sound of the other bells, so it was taken back by the founder who provided another, weighing, this time, 1131 pounds.
1599. (1, 2, 3, see annexes).
A series of 11 bells, forming a harmonized set, and intended to form a carillon, were purchased at the foundry, by the council of the church of Our Lady beyond the Dyle in Mechelen. The set weighed 1,549 pounds. This work was paid at 42 florins per hundred pounds, instead of 38 florins, like before. The more delicate care needed to make the bells harmonize with each other, explains this increase of price. The contract for this supply was registered by the notary Jan van der Hofstadt on 26th May 1599.
1600. (See annexes).
The founder had delivered a bell to the churchwarden of the church of Hingene, province of Antwerp. A sum due in écots, at the time of delivery, remained unpaid. In this connection he appeared before the magistrate of Mechelen. In filing his claim, he declared himself 47 years old.
1603. (26, 30, see annexes).
The Great Bell of Waesmunster Church, Province of East Flanders, was recast in 1603, by this founder at a price of 75 pounds in total. One of the wardens went
123 to Mechelen to take delivery of the bell and transport it. When all was ready, the founder claimed the payment. It was customary, he claimed, to be paid at the point of delivery. The warden, despite his protests, had to pay on this account a sum of 10 florins.
1604. (See annexes).
The founder provides two new pannes for the bell at the tower of Saint Rombout, Mechelen. After subtracting the weight of the old pannes, left the sum of 10 pounds 4 sous.
1606. (7)
Until the end of the eighteenth century, the church of the municipality of Godveerdegem, province of East Flanders, had a small bell of 100 pounds, with a height of 1 ½ feet and measuring 2 feet in diameter. It was decorated with three angel heads and bore the inscription:
PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN HEFT MI GHEGOTEN. 1606.
1610. (31).
The large bell of the church of Lierre, with a weight of 8000 pounds, was cracked in August 1610. It was sent to Mechelen and van den Ghein, who made two new ones, one of which was called "Salvator" and weighed 7861 pounds; the other, named "Maria", 1597 pounds. They were delivered to the destination on the 13th November.
124 1610.
A bell once owned by Felix van Aerschodt, bell founder in Leuven, which was sold to an English antique dealer bore the inscription:
PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN HEFT MY GHEGOTEN INT JAER M DC X. SINTE MICHIEL IS MYNEN NAEM MY GELUYT SY GODT BEQUAEM.
1610. (7)
The small municipality of Wechelderzande, in the province of Antwerp, still possesses in its beautiful fifteenth-century tower, a bell by Peter van den Ghein, with the following inscription:
PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN HEFT MY GHEGOTEN INT JAER ONS HEER M CCCCCC X .....
These letters of 0.02m height, are circled in a double net above and below, the thinnest of which is at the inside. Above the upper net there is the same frieze as on the bell of Peter II in Marne, Germany, cast in 1565, which is reproduced above. It is especially remarkable for its special ornamentation, carefully described by Mr. F. Donnet.
It bears the imprint of three medals, separated by winged heads of little angels who, by triple bonds coming from their mouths, hang suspended elegant cartouches. This whole pattern, which we reproduce below, measures 0.065m high and 0.10 wide. The medal figures are of great
125
interest. The first, without inscription, is a very artistic representation of the Adoration of the Shepherds. It
seems to belong to the sixteenth century. Of oval shape, it is 0.08m high and measures 0.07m in diameter. In the shelter of an antique door, is placed the crib, alongside of which are the Virgin and Saint Joseph. All around, with graceful attitudes, shepherds hurry. In the upper part hang angels.
The second medal, with a diameter of 0.065m, shows the bust and profile of Philip II. Around it are these words:
PHILIPPUS o REX o PRINC. o HISP o AET o S o AN o XXVIII o
This medal is known; it was struck in 1555 to commemorate the proclamation of Philip II as king, at the abdication of his father, the Emperor Charles V. It is also found on the bell of Jan II, 1566 and on that of Peter II, 1585.
The third figure, also 0.065m in diameter, is that of a medal dating from the year 1579 and which is
126 reminiscent of Hyppolite de Gonzague, sister of Octave de Gonzague, commander of the Royal Infantry in the Netherlands under Don Juan of Austria. This medal bears the signature of Jacob Trez. On the obverse is the bust of the princess, elegantly dressed and adorned with many jewels. A circular inscription is designed as follows:
HIPPOLYTA o GONZAGA o FERDINANDI o FIL o AN. XVII. o
This beautiful bell has a diameter of 0.60m and is 0.45m high.
1613.
The municipal museum of Mechelen keeps a small bell, 0.29m high, 0.36m diameter, with a curious inscription; while the first part is Flemish, the last is Latin:
The shield of Malines precedes the text. In place of the letter D, which should be represented twice in the text, the founder has placed the letter G reversed. The ornamentation is very simple and simply consists of a cartouche hanging from the winged angel's head, reproduced on the previous page.
1614. (32, 33).
The bell of Crail Church, Fife County, England [actually Scotland!], bears the inscription:
127 PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN HEFT MY GHEGOTEN INT JAER (M) DC XIIII 1
1617. (24, 25, see appendices).
A 185-pound bell was provided by this founder, for the carillon of Saint Rombout in Mechelen, at the rate of 12 sous and 1 denier per pound.
1617. (24, 25, see appendices).
At the same time as the previous bell, he also supplied to the church of Saint Catherine in Mechelen, a bell to replace another, weighing 950 pounds, which had been removed from this church, to complete the tower set at St. Rombout. Annexes
1 J. Russell Walker. Pre-reformation churches in Fife and the Lothians. Vol. 1. Fifeshire. 128
129
130
131
Jan III
The oldest of his known works, is a mortar dating back to 1588, however, it was not until 1598 that there was a bell bearing his name. His career ended with his death in 1626.
The commercial disaster to which his death gave rise is not unreasonably explained by his weak state of health, due to a terminal illness. Indeed, his reputation as a founder seems well established by the numerous orders he was given and, what is more, he was a skilful musician, as proven by the various chimes for which he had orders to design or make.
He alone of his homonyms named Jan, sometimes adopts the form of Hans instead of Jan.
The ornamentation of his bells is unknown to us; his inscriptions are simple, in Flemish, rarely in Latin. Exports to foreign countries had declined and we do not find his works anywhere other than in our provinces.
1598.
Near Moll, province of Antwerp, in a small turret over the chapel of Lille, there is still a bell with the inscription:
HANS VAN DEN GHEIN ME FECIT MD XCVIII.
132 In his history of the municipality of Meerhout, the priest Jongeneelen attributed a bell to Frans van den Ghein, and gave it the date of 1527.
The name of the founder Frans had intrigued us greatly. Mr. A. Reydams, our obliging colleague, has kindly at our request, examined this bell on the spot and could thus rectify the double error of the first name and the date.
1598. (30)
In 1718, the municipality of Massemen, province of East Flanders, still had a bell with the inscription:
HANS VAN DEN GHEIN HEEFT MY GHEGOTEN INT JAER ONS HEEREN EEN DUYSENT VYF HONDERT ACHT IN NEGENTICH. S. MARIA PAROCHIE VAN MASSEMEN.
1601. (30)
In 1747, one reads on the big bell of the church of Overmeire, Province of East Flanders, the following legend:
JAN VAN DEN GHEIN HEEFT MY GEGOTEN INT JAER ONS HEEREN M D CCI. SANCTA MARIA VAN OVERMEIRE, ORA PRO NOBIS.
In a round escutcheon is represented the Blessed Virgin with the baby Jesus; in another, a lion; in a third, Adam and Eve. We assume that the date of 1701 is an error that it must be corrected to 1601.
1606. (1).
The church of Great Béguinage, once located outside the ramparts of Mechelen, had lost all its bells, when
Medallion from the bell of Béguinage in Mechelen, cast in 1606 by Jan van den Ghein III
133 the invasion of the "Beggars", in 1578. The Béguinage was reconstituted inside the city and they built a new provisional church, for which a bell was cast in 1606. It still serves today and bears the inscription:
JAN VAN DEN GHEIN HEEFT MI GHEGOTEN INT JAER M CCCCCC VI. S. ALEXIUS PATRONUS ECCL. MAGNI. BEGHIN. MAGHL.
It is decorated with a frieze identical to that used by Peter II, in 1585, on the bell of the church of Saint Jan in Mechelen, and which is reproduced above. We see also the cartouche hanging on the angel's head, whose facsimile was given, speaking of the bell of 1610 by Peter III. Finally, the medallion reproduced here, adorns also this bell. It is 0.08m in diameter and represents the appearance of Our Lord on the altar, during the mass said by a high priest, who, surprised, has departed from the altar. Beside Christ are two candelabra filled with candles. On the sides and at the top are angels kneeling and holding torches in their hands.
1607. (23)
In the chapel of Amelgem, province of Brabant, in the district of Brussels, there is still a bell bearing the inscription:
JAN VAN DEN GHEIN HEEFT MY GHEGOTEN M CCCCCC VII.
1607. (7)
The second of the bells of the church of Lille, province of Antwerp, bears the following inscription:
134 JAN VAN DEN GHEIN HEEFT MY GEGOTEN INT JAER 1607. JAN VAN OECKEL, SINTE PEETER PATROON TOT LILLE.
1607. (29, 1902, pp. 387 and 553).
On the authority of the parish priest of Sichem, province of Brabant, the church bells were repaired or recast by Jan van den Ghein. When the work was finished, he delivered four bells, the largest of which weighed 2100 pounds. The costs of this were supported by the chapter and abbey of St. Gertrude in Leuven.
The second, of werkklok, weighed 727 pounds.
The third, which still exists, weighs 535 pounds and carries the inscription:
JAN VAN DEN GHEIN HEEFT MY GEGOTEN INT JAER M CCCCCC VI.
On the body of the bell we read:
SANCTA MARIA ORA PRO NOBIS.
The fourth weighed 322 pounds, and was donated by the parish priest G. Van Thienwinckel, who bore the costs himself, amounting to 160 Rhine florins, not including the pannes, wing and belts.
1611. (1, 20).
In Leuven, in the bell tower of Saint Jacob church, exists a little bell from this founder.
1612. (34)
At the time of the religious troubles, in 1575, the church of 135 Vosselaere was robbed of its bells. This situation was not rectified until 1612, when the bell we see today was cast by the founder Jan van den Ghein.
1615.
At the Cinquantenaire Museum in Brussels, there is a small bell, carrying, with the coat of arms of the city of Mechelen, the inscription:
JAN VAN DEN GHEIN ME FECIT M CCCCCC XV.
Below the inscription are three winged angel heads. The height with attachment is 0.35m and 0.24m without. The diameter is 0.285m.
1622.
Thirty years ago (around 1888), the founder van Aerschodt, from Leuven, was commissioned to recast a cracked bell belonging to the church of Brecht, Province of Antwerp, and which bore the following inscription, preceded by the coat of arms of Mechelen:
JAN VAN DEN GHEIN HEEFT MI GHEGOTEN INT JAER ONS HEEREN M D LXXXXXXXII.
1622. (35, see annexes).
A 64-pound bell was ordered this year by the church council of Edegem, province of Antwerp, to be placed in the campanile, which was at the point of intersection of the transept and the nave. The founder received in payment the sum of 45 florins 18 sous.
1623. (30)
In a small chapel near the city of 136 Termonde, on the dike of Saint Odulphe, still exists a bell with the inscription:
JAN VAN DEN GHEIN HEEFT MY GHEGOTEN INT JAER ONS HEEREN M CCCCCC XXIII.
1623. (7)
The small bell of the convent of Gempe or l’Ile-Duc, at Winghe-Saint-Georges, province of Brabant, was recast, in 1623, by Jan van den Ghein; its weight was raised from 150 to 183 pounds.
1623. (1, 36, see annexes).
The magistrate of Tienen made an agreement with Jan van den Ghein, October 17th, 1623, for the recasting of the seven bells from their "voorslag".
In 1626, the founder, whose commercial situation was not exactly brilliant, had not yet acted on this agreement. By an award dated May 8th of the same year, the founder was put in abeyance by the magistrate of Mechelen to make the delivery before the following July 1st. Nevertheless, the execution of the order remained pending, apparently as a result of the founder's illness. He died shortly after.
Immediately, instructions were given by the city of Tienen to return the bells provided to Jan van den Ghein. In 1628, it was asking the estate of van den Ghein, besides the seven bells, also for the cost of 677 pounds of metal, which were missing from the 3145 pounds of metal delivered to van den Ghein for the purpose of completing the chime. The administration of the van den Ghein bankruptcy was not 137 completed by 1635 and the Magistrate of Tienen was invited to attend the meeting of creditors. Nevertheless, it was only by an order of 4th December 1638 that the authorities of Tienen were authorized to remove from the public debt the seven bells of their "voorslag".
The municipal accounts of the city of Tienen make mention of the transport costs of the said bells, in the year 1639, that is after 13 years of absence.
1626. (30)
The municipality of Denderbelle, province of East Flanders, paid 159 pounds, 17 escalins, for a bell weighing 1345 pounds.
1626. (See annexes)
At the time of the death of the founder, the Prior of the Congregation of "Scholars" from Léau, Province of Brabant, requested the magistrate to grant possession of five bells, cast by the deceased, with the metal provided by the municipality. This claim being granted, the Prior was authorized to take these bells. However, the order, probably made with an incomplete carillon in mind, the same prior claimed in addition the quantity of metal delivered and not used. This dispute remained ongoing for some time, because in 1628, the same religious body introduced on account of bankruptcy, a claim of 1200 florins, representing the value of the metal delivered for casting and not used for bells.
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138 Annexes
139
140
141
Peter IV
Barely 19 years old, he was forced, following the death of his father in 1626, to take over the running of the business.
A 1628 mortar already bears his name while the oldest bell known only dates from 1635. This one was delivered to the church of Hoogstraeten, which proves that the disastrous end of his father’s career had not yet shaken all the credit of the old van den Ghein business, and that customers from afar still came to stock up in Mechelen.
During his career, which ended in 1654, he provided a considerable number of bells with quite respectable dimensions, such as those of the Saint Rombout tower in Mechelen, and the church of Saint Gudule in Brussels. The supply of 8 new bells, which he made to improve the carillon of Saint Rombout in Mechelen, establishes that he also had extensive musical knowledge. The ornamentation of his bells is nothing special. His inscriptions are sometimes Latin, such as those from 1638, in Mechelen and Brussels, but most often they are Flemish. His works are no longer found abroad.
142 1635. (37).
In 1892, a church bell was broken in order to be recast for Saint Catherine in Hoogstraeten, Province of Antwerp, carrying the inscription:
PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN HEEFT MY GHEGOTEN TOT MECHELEN 1635.
It had a diameter of 0.62m and weighed 132 kg.
1638. (24, see annexes).
The big bourdon of Saint Rombout’s tower in Mechelen was cracked. In the meeting of April 12th, 1638, the Magistrate decided on a redesign and made an announcement in all the parish churches that on the following April 20th, there would be a collection in the 5 sections of the city. The clergy were invited to delegate five of its members to the committee responsible for this collection. On the appointed date, all appointed members met at City Hall, but before making their tour, a collective lunch was served, the cost of which was 11 florins, 1s. 6 den. This communal meal served them well, because the total proceeds, including the offering of the members of the chapter, amounted to 933 florins 16s. 1 quarter. To this figure was added the sum of 300 florins donated by the Archbishop. The total revenue was therefore 1233 florins 16 sous 3 den.
Having the necessary funds to cover the costs of the recasting, the Magistrate was concerned with gathering information about the conditions for this job and for this purpose he addressed the city of Ghent, whose 2 big bells had been recast in 1635, by Florent and Jean Delcourt, bell founders in Douai. The two Mechelen founders, Peter de Clerck the young 143 and Peter van den Ghein, assuming that the Magistrate was willing to have the recasting done by these foreign founders, joined and filed a collective petition by which, offering their conditions for work, they asked the Magistrate to give them preference for their double qualities of being from Mechelen and being famous founders.
Their approach was welcomed and soon, after some modifications to the conditions, the contract was signed. This states that the city would provide them with the cracked bell for replacement with a new design, as well as the copper and tin needed to strengthen the bell. The new bell had to have the same dimensions, shape and weight, and had to be of an harmonious sound - in all respects similar to the old bell.
The Magistrate reserved the right to order the recasting of the bell if it did not meet the conditions, following its submission to him for examination.
The founders were required to fix the figures provided and the currencies indicated by the Magistrate. They would deliver the bell extracted from the pit, the transportation not being their responsibility. The operation had to be guaranteed for three years and, all the while, one of the two founders was obliged to go up the tower whenever it was to be set in motion, in order to prevent accidents and to remedy it. For this extraordinary service, he was awarded annually a sum of 25 florins.
Delivery was to be made in the next two months, all the excess of the matter would be for the benefit of the Magistrate. After everything was in place, the Magistrate would pay the founders the sum of 1000 florins. For this sum, the 144 founders were obliged to rent the necessary location for the work of the casting, to construct and demolish furnaces, and deliver all accessories for this job. As a guarantee, the two contractors had to offer all their goods, and the founder Peter de Clerck, more especially, had to offer his dwelling, located at the Cattle Market in the vicinity of the Jesuit church, which, according to declaration, was rented for only 14 florins a year.
The cracked bell came down from the tower in July and hauled on a cart by a crowd of children to Saint Jacob Street, where it was to be re-melted, at the place where the Road of Herbes [possibly modern Groenstraat] was built a few years ago.
Paul van der Auwermolen and Hendrick Wuytiers were appointed by the city as experts to oversee the preparations of casting and examination of materials. François Van Looy had been commissioned to carve the coat of arms and the figures to place on the bell. The operation took place on August 21st, 1638, and its weight, found after casting, was 15,228 pounds, while the old bell was only 14,102 pounds. It was blessed on September 7th by Jan van Wachtendonck, Dean of the Chapter, in the absence of the Archbishop, and the same day it was hoisted to the tower. The inscriptions were as follows:
ICK BEN GEGOTEN VAN PEETER DE CLERCK EN PEETER VAN DEN GHEYN, BEYDE BORGERS TOT MECHELEN INT JAER ONS HEEREN M CCCCCC XXXVIII ENDE SALVATOR KERSTEN GEDAEN.
On the middle of the bell stood the coat of arms of the city, with the motto "in trouwe vast" [constant in faith].
145 Below was another inscription:
REGNANTE PHILIPPO, FERDINANDO FRATRE BELGIUM GUBERNANTE, ME SALVATORIS NOMINE. S. P. Q. M. IN PRISTINUM NOMEN AND SONUM RESTITUIT. Ao 1638.
The sound of the new bell was sol# according to the tuning fork in use then.
On November 28th, 1639, the two founders addressed a new request to the Magistrate: to obtain an increase of remuneration, in consideration of the extraordinary expenses that they had to incur and which had left only a meagre profit. The Magistrate's answer is unknown.
Later, in 1776, the bell was reduced by more than 280 pounds of metal in order to match its tone with that of the other bells.
It continued to function well until April 27th, 1828, when it developed a fault during a ring. After some unsuccessful attempts to repair it, it underwent a re-design in 1844 by the brothers Louis and Sévérin Van Aerschodt, from Leuven. It weighs this time 8146kg. It was returned to work on January 4th 1845. It is still this bell that one hears on solemn occasions.
1638. (7, 38. T. III, 275).
The same year, he cast a similar bell for the College of Saints Michel and Gudule in Brussels. It weighed 14,138 pounds and bore the following inscription:
146 SALVATOR BEN IK GENOEMT ENDE GEGOTEN VAN PEETER DE CLERCK ENDE PEETER VAN DEN GHEYN TOT MECHELEN IN HET JAER ONS HEEREN M DC XXXVIII P. IIII. PROCURANTIBUS MAGISTRIS FABRICÆ ECCLESIÆ GUILIELMO BRANT, PBRO, CANONICO THESAURARIO, FRANCISCUS DE DONGELBERGHE EQ. AURAT. DNO HERLARY, ZILBECAE URBIS CONSULI. SALVATORIS NOMINE FUSA ANNO 1481 VISCATA REFUSE ANNO 1638.
1638. (1).
A bell named “Maria” was delivered in this year to the church of Béguinage in Mechelen, weighing 845 pounds. Hidden during the revolutionary problems of the late 18th century, it was restored to its place in 1832. On it, the inscription:
PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN HEEFT MY GHEGOTEN INT JAER ONS HEEREN M CCCCCC XXXVIII D. O. M. ET B. MARIAE SEMPER VIRGIN SACRUM.
For ornamentation, we find the frieze reproduced below:
147 The motif is a set of three flowering stems of length 0.06m and height of 0.04m, which is repeated all around the bell. Lower, the inscription under which a console is formed by a man's head surrounded by foliage and ends laterally with another head and profile view. This motif, with a height of 0.07m and width of 0.15m, is similar to that reproduced on the bell of Marne, by Peter I. Further, a Saint Catherine, resting her right hand on a sword, whose point rests on the ground, and holding a book in her left hand; a broken wheel lies at her feet. This figure measures 0.07m in height. We see the representation of the Paschal Lamb.
1638. (1).
A 585-pound bell named "Begga" had been made at the same time as the bell "Maria", for the church of Béguinage at Mechelens. Hidden in 1792, with the first, it was later sold to the church of Londerzeel, where it was destroyed in the fire in the tower.
1642. (39, see annexes).
On July 12 of this year, the fabric council of Hallaer Church, Province of Antwerp, paid the sum of 351 florins 18 sous for the redesign of a cracked bell of 2673 pounds weight. It was hoisted to the tower after being transported from Mechelen to Hallaer, on a cart drawn by eight horses and accompanied by the founder, his wife, his servant, six carters, a carpenter and a blacksmith. The bell no longer exists today.
1644. (25, see annexes).
Eight new bells were delivered to improve the
148 carillon tower of Saint Rombout of Mechelen by van den Ghein. For the casting of these bells, he used the left-over metal from the re-casting of the bourdon. The quantity of metal still remaining, he received in payment for his salary.
1644. (1).
A bell, a gift from the Royal Artillery, of Mechelen, at the church of Saint Jan in Mechelen, and weighing 5300 pounds, was damaged at the time of the French Revolution. It bore the inscription:
PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN HEEFT MY GEGOTEN OP HOOCHSTRATE TOT MECHELEN IN HET JAER ONS HEEREN 1644.
1651.
In the old carillon of Hal was a bell of Peter van den Ghein, dated 1651, weighing 28.5 kg and with a diameter of 0.353m, ringing the note re. It bore the inscription:
PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN ME FECIT 1651.
1651.
A little bell without any ornament, in the possession of Marcel Michiels, founder in Tournai, and which was formerly part of the old carillon of Hal, bears the inscription:
PEETER VAN DEN GHEYN ME FECIT 1651.
It rings the note la#, weighs 7kg and measures 0.023m in diameter and 0.16m in height. 149 1651.
A bell from the Cinquantenaire Museum, Brussels, bearing the number 3851, has for ornamentation just the inscription in Roman capitals:
PEETER VAN DEN GHEYN ME FECIT 1651.
The height is 0.15m and, with the attachment ring, 0.205m. The diameter is 0.20m.
1652. (40)
There is still a bell in the tower of the church of Schooten, Province of Antwerp, whose inscription is:
PEETER VAN DE GHEYN HEEFT MY GEGOTEN TOT MECHELEN INT JAER 1652 TOEBEHOORENDE AEN SCHOOTEN.
Beneath are the arms of the abbey and those of Respani, Lord of Schooten.
Lower, under the word LAURENTIUS, is the representation of a statue of St. Lawrence, then these words:
IGNATIUS ROBERT.
1652. (41)
Peter van den Ghein received the order for two new bells for the church of Assche in the province of Brabant. The metal used came from old bells, to which he added 850 pounds. He received a salary for his work of 151 fl. 15 den., following the terms of a contract of February 10th, 1652.
The community of Assche, due to the looting of 1695, during the bombardment of Brussels, lost its bells in this turmoil. 150 1654.
In the carillon of Hal, there is a bell of Peter van den Ghein, dated 1654, weighing 20.9 kg and measuring in diameter 0.295m.
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151
152
153
154
Jan IV
This founder began in 1665 and died in 1697, and with him disappears the lineage of van den Ghein who worked in Mechelen.
He was especially a founder of brass, nevertheless there are a considerable number of his bells. He also possessed, like all members of the family, musical knowledge, which is used to improve the carillon of Saint Rombout and correct the defects of that of Our Lady in Mechelen; but he did not provide a full set. His bells are adorned like those of his ancestors, but apparently with less care. Inscriptions are banal and Flemish.
155 1666. (25, see annexes).
An additional bell for the carillon in Saint Rombout’s tower in Mechelen was ordered in September 1666. He received for this work the sum of 77 florins 10 sous.
1671. (39).
A 3000-pound weight bell was ordered from the founder by the church builders of Heyst-op-den-berg, province of Antwerp. By the contract, passed before the notary J. Van den Broeck, on June 17th, 1671, the founder undertook to use metal from two old bells, weighing together 5587 pounds, and to ensure smooth operation of the new bell for 3 years. In the event of a crack occurring in this time, he was obliged to recast it at his own expense. The excess of metal from the old bells was to be taken over by him at the price of ten sous per pound.
1673. (25, see annexes).
The magistrate of Mechelen ordered from him again a bell to complete the carillon at St .Rombout’s.
1673. (1)
He provided a small bell, of weight of 395 pounds, for the turret of the church of Saint Jan. It bore the inscription:
JAN VAN DEN GHEIN HEEFT MY GEGOTEN TOT MECHELEN. ANNO 1673. BARBARA BEN IC.
1680. (24, see annexes).
In the year 1680, when the bell “Charles”, in the tower of Saint Rombout in Mechelen, was cracked, the magistrate of the city 156 brought together a few founders and other experts: Cauthals and van den Ghein, to take their advice on the redesign. The consultation ended without conclusion and the bell was re- cast only in 1696 by Melchior de Haze of Antwerp.
1686.
A small bell of 130 pounds, existed formerly in Schipdael, Lennick St. Martin. It had a height of 1 ½ feet and 2 feet in diameter. It bore the inscription:
JAN VAN DEN GHEIN ME FECIT. ANNO 1686.
1687. (14. 42).
The church of Berlaer, near Lier in the province of Antwerp, possessed, before the French Revolution, a big bell weighing 3760 pounds, dedicated to St. Peter. It had been cast in 1687 by Jan van den Ghein and bore the inscription:
JAN VAN DEN GHEYN HEEFT MY GHEGOTEN INT JAER ONS HEERE ANNO 1687 CAROLUS GODEFRIDUS BARON VAN LOY (Loë) TOT WISSEN COMMANDEUR IN PITZENBORGH.
We also saw the coat of arms of this last person and those of Norbertine van Diependael, abbess of the Roosendael Convent (Waelhem) with the motto: Labora Sustinens, and the representation of St. Peter with the caption: S. Petrus patronus in Berlaer prope Lyram est noēn meum.
On December 2nd, 1798, twenty French soldiers armed with
157 forge hammers entered the church of Berlaer and tried to break the bell, but it resisted their attack. A few days later, at the festival of the Immaculate Conception, other soldiers broke the upper part of this bell and threw it down the church.
1691. (1)
The church of Saint Jan in Mechelen once had a bell from this founder weighing 1757 pounds. It bore the inscription:
JAN BAPTIST BEN IC VAN JAN VAN DEN GHEIN GEGOTEN INT JAER M D C LXXXXI.
This bell was saved from destruction during the invasion by French troops at the end of the eighteenth century. It was thanks to the Mechelen carillonneur G. Haverals, who obtained from the municipality the favour of keeping this bell, so to be able with it to complete his carillon, which was used to play Republican tunes, and this way to celebrate and spread the advent of the new regime. It stayed for a long time in the premises of Les Halles, from where it went out, after the troubles, to resume its original purpose. Today it no longer exists and we do not know the circumstances of its disappearance.
1692.
The church of Saint Dymphne in Gheel, province of Antwerp, still has a bell from this founder with the inscription:
JAN VAN DEN GHEIN HEEFT MY GEGOTEN TOT MECHELEN. ANNO 1692. SANCTA DYMPHNA.
158 1695. (3, see annexes).
The builders of the church of Our Lady beyond the Dyle, Mechelen, spoke to the founder about adjusting the sound of the bell "Anna", part of the carillon of this church, and which was probably in dissonance with the others.
1696.
The second of two existing bells in Beersel, province of Antwerp, is the work of this founder. It measures in height 0.67m and in diameter 0.87m. Around the crown runs a frieze with chimeras, whose subject is easily deciphered on reproduction below. The whole motif, which repeats itself, measures 0.10m wide by 0.04m high. Below, on a line, reads the following inscription:
JAN VAN DEN GHEYN HEEFT MY GHEGOTEN TOT MECHELEN. ANNO 1696.
Below this inscription, there is another:
BEESEL OP DEN BOS. S. RENISEUS.
The characters of these two inscriptions are in capital letters placed very irregularly, with little care. Errors found in the second entry prove also the absence of much attention. Instead of Beersel op den Bosch, the real name of the municipality, we read Beesel op den bos and the name of the patron of the locality which is Saint Remi, is transformed into St. Reniseus instead of St. Remigius.
In addition to these two inscriptions and the frieze, the bell is still adorned, on its body, on one side with a figurine with a height of
Medallion on the bell of Beersel, cast in 1696 by Jan van den Ghein IV.
Frieze from the same bell.
159
0.11m and a width of 0.04m, representing the Holy Virgin standing and holding the child Jesus in her arm; on the opposite side, with a round medallion with a diameter of 0.115m, is a well organized representation of the house of Nazareth, whose photograph is opposite.
In the foreground, we see the house, whose roof is looming on the left and near which the Blessed Virgin sits. At her feet, on a small bed, plays the child Jesus whose head is haloed; two angels stand at his side. In the background, on the right, Saint Joseph, with a great axe, splits wood, while in front of him, an angel is about to put the pot on the fire.
1696. (40)
At the church of Bevel, near Lierre, province of Antwerp, is a bell dedicated to the Virgin and remade in 1696. Inscription:
JAN VAN DEN GHEYN HEEFT MY GEGHOTEN TOT MECHELEN. ONSE LIEVE VROUWE CLOCK VAN DE PARCOCHIALE KERCKE VAN BEVELE. BYVANCK VAN LIER. JACOBUS MALDRAU, PASTOOR, PETRUS DAEMS EN JOANNES FAES, KERCKMEESTERS.
1697. (3, see annexes).
Before his death, the founder provided a bell to the Church of Our Lady beyond the Dyle, Mechelen, for which his widow received the sum of 39 florins.
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160 Annexes
161
II. – Cannons
Some authors have argued that the van den Gheins produced guns; this was disputed by others. It is beyond doubt, however, according to an archival document, that one of them, at least, performed the cannon casting while dealing with the casting of bells.
Unfortunately, to our knowledge, there is not a single piece of artillery bearing the name van den Ghein. Without being able to judge "from sight", we can conclude, however, according to the document to which we just made allusion, that in matters of cannons, Jan II was a competent founder and very skilled. Indeed, four experts, among whom is a founder of cannons, declared unanimously that the 6 pieces of artillery, about which a dispute had arisen, were cast according to all the rules of the art and were absolutely in accordance with the conditions of the contract.
This same founder also cast other pieces, but of less importance. This is what we were able to bring together regarding Jan II, as a founder of artillery pieces.
In the year 1565, he provided the corporation of brewers with a bouche à feu, for which they paid him 15 florins. It is
162 probably of one of those tiny cannons, which in those times, were used by corporations to fire shots during their festivities. After delivery, the barrel was put to the test, and the expenses of the libations, and also those of the order for the gun, were met by the corporation (see annexes).
Like all his fellow professionals dealing with the casting of guns, he was also trading powder. He provided some 10 pounds to the city on the occasion of the test of the municipal artillery in 1566 (see annexes).
An order of 6 pieces of artillery which we have mentioned above, was made by a merchant from Bruges, Jacob van den Hove. The conditions were stipulated by contract made in 1567, before the notary Peter van Lare of Antwerp.
When the pieces were finished, there was a protest by the Bruges merchant about their quality. The dispute was brought before the court of Mechelen’s aldermen. The latter decided, on April 22nd, 1567, to have the cannons examined by the founders Remi of Halut and Gérard van den Nieuwenhuyse and the two municipal experts responsible for the control of the metal industry. The fourth person designated for that purpose should be heard under oath; in case of a dissolving of these, a fifth expert could be designated. The costs of this expertise was to be borne by the one who was found to be in the wrong.
On the following May 2nd, the experts were heard, Remi of Halut had been replaced meanwhile by Jacob Waghevens, the bell founder, and all unanimously, declared that van den Ghein had cast the said pieces very suitably and according to all the conditions required by the
163 contract. In the wake of this, van den Hove was dismissed and ordered to pay the expenses (see annexes).
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Annexes
164
165
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166
III Handbells
The making of handbells, being considered as a secondary branch of their business, explains the lack of variety that founders used in their choice of subjects, and also the repetition of designs used. Because it would have been so easy to remake any of these bells at little expense; this is no doubt also the reason why a number of these products offer a mix of themes, thrown somehow at random, into the mould of the handbell.
The handbell reproduced here, belongs to the municipal museum of Mechelen; it was cast in 1588 by Peter van den Ghein II. It represents the usual type of bell from the van den Gheins. The subject is that of Orpheus. It has retained the handle consisting of two children back-to-back.
The pieces from the van den Ghein workshops - meaning those signed and dated – represent two topics known to all: The Annunciation and Orpheus charming the animals. The scene of the Annunciation is the one we found more frequently. It was described by Bishop Barbier of Montault in these terms:1
“The Archangel Gabriel, standing, without halo, short wings
1 Many of these details have been borrowed from the source indicated in n° 43 of the Bibliographic Index.
Handbell in the Municipal Museum in Mechelen, cast by Peter van den Ghein II.
167 and almost at rest, delivers the divine message that has been entrusted to him; he also holds a sceptre to attest to the name in whom he speaks. He is wearing a long tunic, imitated from the antique, which is retained by a double belt. The Virgin, haloed, is kneeling before a prie-dieu on which is an open book; bareheaded she has a coat on her dress wrapped at the waist. Surprised at the voice of the angel, she turns away, expressing her astonishment by the gesture of her two hands.
Following the iconographic tradition, a vase is placed on the floor, between the two interlocutors, to proclaim the virginity of Mary, respecting her motherhood; from this vase, with two handles and gadrooned on the belly, springs a lily, garnished with two flowers and three buttons. Orpheus's motif of playing the violin and charming the animals has sometimes given rise to unique interpretations. The real interpretation is the one that makes the violinist an Orpheus, and this is, moreover, confirmed by examples bearing: "Orpheus es minen naem".
Orpheus is surrounded by various animals such as a lion, a standing bear, birds perched on branches or foliage, a squatting little monkey, another monkey imitating Orpheus and holding a stick, with which he scrapes another stick, a squatting rabbit, an ostrich, a stork, a sphinx, a fox, an owl, a dog.
On unsigned handbells, we find this same scene with an Orpheus and animals whose design is absolutely identical to that of the bells signed "van den Ghein"; their attribution, therefore, does not present any difficulty and hesitation is impossible. But, this same scene is also encountered on unsigned bells with an Orpheus character and various animals, in 168 slightly modified attitudes. We can judge by the two types of Orpheus reproduced below.
These two bells belong to our collection. The one on the left is not signed, but bears the shield of Mechelen and presents the type of Orpheus we meet on the bells signed by Peter van den Ghein; we can argue, by comparing this character with the one found on the handbell belonging to the municipal museum of Mechelen, and whose cliché is at the head of this chapter. The other, the one on the right, represents the type of modified Orpheus and brings to the upper part the legend of which we see few letters: Orpheus es minen naem. Is it necessary to attribute to van den Ghein the variant models? It is possible that they come from one of their workshops, since at certain times there was more than one van den Ghein working in the foundry; but it is also possible that they come from the workshops of a founder other than van den Ghein. We cannot now answer this question. But it is certain that the variant of the Orpheus scene 169 came from a workshop in Mechelen. Indeed, on a mortar from 1564, n° 2925, at the Cinquantenaire Museum, Brussels, we find this variant, accompanied this time by the shield of the city of Mechelen1. The solution remains undecided.
The true attribution can only be done if we meet this variant type on a signed handbell. The founders cared very little about the ornamental details of those objects which, for them, were of minimal importance.
This proves the lack of care that was brought to the choice of themes. On the same bell is found the meeting of the two scenes quoted above: the Annunciation and Orpheus.
At other times, the representation of Orpheus is accompanied by a religious legend. The ornamental motifs that accompany these subjects are renaissance in style and consist of colonnades with garlands, ram's heads, etc. The coat of arms of the city of Mechelen is very often there, even in the absence of a signature and date.
Legends made with changing letters often present incorrectness resulting from the substitution of one letter for another, such as, for example, the A reversed to V, L for I, C for E, etc.
They are sometimes in Latin, sometimes in Flemish. On the bells we know as coming from van den Ghein, we meet:
1 Two unsigned bells from the same museum, one of 1547, listed as n° 654, the other of 1558, listed as n° 1176, present the same variant, but do not bear, however, like the mortar, the shield of Mechelen. 170 O MATER DEI, MEMENTO MEI. CONCORDIA PARVAE CRESCUNT. LOF GOD VAN AL.
These formulas are not, however, specific to van den Ghein; we find them also on the bells of other founders.
Like the religious legends, the names of the founders are in both languages, sometimes van den Ghein, Gheine, or Gheineus.
Some bells also have other names than the one of the founder, they are those of the owners or the donors.
The bells are equipped with a handle which, most often, is cast as part of the piece itself. These pieces are usually two or three figurines back-to-back: children, lovers or naked women; other times foliage or acanthus leaves; at other times still of 3 broad faces, composed of Renaissance ornaments.
The sizes of the bells vary: the largest are about 0.65m high and their handle is 0.06m. The smaller ones reach 0.09m, not including the handle, and about 0.15 with the handle.
For these different sizes, however, the same ornamental motifs were used, but on the larger ones are also placed a border with legend at the bottom or two borders, the second of which is at the shoulder of the bell, sometimes a third above the first.
The bells of larger size were not
171 of a current style, so they almost always had the name or the coat-of-arms of those who ordered them.
The handbells of van den Ghein, which were destined for church to serve at Mass, or in the household for summoning staff, were on sale widely and have been the subject of a major export trade, which explains why they are still found in all countries. We will follow here the report of the bells cast by van den Ghein, classifying them in chronological order, under the name of Jan first and then Peter:
JAN I.
No handbell of this founder has been reported at present.
JAN II.
1552. (7)
A little handbell that once belonged to the guild of Saint Luke of Antwerp, today in the collection of Mr. Fern. Donnet in Antwerp. Height 0.16m, diameter 0.20m.
The ornamentation is very sober. Around the shoulder, between two double nets, in Gothic characters, the inscription:
In the centre, widely spaced, are the three motifs of the Annunciation, the Virgin, the archangel and the vase of lilies.
1561.
A bell from the collection of Mr. Fr. Claes, in Antwerp:
JAN VAN DEN GHEIN ME FECIT, M CCCCC LXI. 172 JAN III.
1598. (7).
In Aalst in the hospital of Our Lady, there is a little bell with the inscription:
1606. (30) At the college of Termonde there is still a large handbell with the inscription:
JAN VAN DEN GHEYN ME FECIT M CCCCCCVI. DE BELE VAN DE CAPELLE DES HEYLICH SACRAMENTE.
JAN IV.
1683. A handbell in the convent of the Black Sisters in Mechelen. H. 0.18m, D. 0.21m. Inscription:
JAN VAN DEN GHEYN ME FECIT, ANNO 1683.
PETER I.
1534. (53). An armoured [?] bell with characters forming a hook, made for the dean of Aerschot, Philippe d'Aerschot from Schoonhoven. It belonged, in 1885, to Mr. A. van den Hove, then captain of cavalry at Mons. Inscription:
OPUS PETRUS A GHEINE ANNO M D XXXIIII PHILIPPUS DE SCHOENHOVEN DECANUS AERSCHOTEN. 173 1553.
Mr. L. Van den Bergh, in Mechelen, had formerly in his collection, a bell with a handle formed by a group of three children back-to-back. We do not know where it is now. H. with handle 0.135m, 0.08m without. Inscriptions:
At the top:
At the lower edge, preceded by a ram's head:
Above this:
Decorative motifs: On the body of the bell, between the upper inscription and the two lower, three subjects: (1) the coat of arms of Philippe d'Aerschot of Schoenhoven, dean of Aerschot; (2) a medallion with the Virgin holding the child Jesus on her right arm; (3) God the Father. Between each of * * these three themes is, at the top, a group of 3 ram heads *
1553.
A big bell for the use of municipal officials, responsible for checking the weight of bread loaves at the Cornmarket, was provided by Peter van den Ghein to the city of Mechelen, in 1553, at the price of 2 pounds 10 sous.1
1 Municipal account of Mechelen, 1553-1554, fo 260. Paid Mr. Pieter van den Gheyne, bell-founder, for a large bell for breadcutters delivered to the cornmarket cost per item ij lb x st. 174 1557. A small bell at the Steen Museum in Antwerp bears:
PETRUS VAN DEN GHEIN ME FECIT M CCCCC LVII.
D. 0.18m, H. 0.21m; without attachment, 0.15m.
PETER II.
1564. (45) Bell belonging to M. J. Frésart. H. 0.125m. Inscriptions:
Top: O MATER DE(I) M(E)MENTO MEI
The two letters i and e, placed in parentheses, are missing.
Bottom: FECIT PETRUS A GHEIN MDLLXIIII
Decorative motifs: The representation of the Annunciation.
1564. (45) Bell belonging to Mr. Joye-Hano. H. 0.15m. Inscriptions:
O MATER DEY MEMENTO MEY PETRUS GHEYNEUS ME FECIT 1564
Decorative motifs: The representation of the Annunciation.
1566. (18) Copper bell with handle, formed by two children back-to-back at the "De Zeven Keurvorsten" hospice in Amsterdam.
Inscriptions:
O MATER DEY MEMENTO MEY PETRUS GHEYNUS ME FECIT 1566
Decorative motifs: Medallions. 175 1566. (46). Handbell belonging to the mayor of Rye [Kent, England].
Inscription: PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1566.
1568. (45) Bell belonging to Mr. Van de Velde. H. 0.12m.
Inscriptions: L(OFT) GOD VAN A(L) PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1568.
Decorative motifs: Orpheus playing the lute.
1571. (11) Bell from a former priest of Parant (Aisne), today owned by Mr. Eugene Varin, engraver in Grouttes (Aisnes). Inscriptions:
Upper: O MATER DEI MEMENTO MEI
Lower, preceded by the shield of Mechelen: PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT. 1571.
Ornamentation composed of little dressed characters, kneeling, clasped hands, some carrying a little bag, the others, alternately turned to the right and to the left, in other words back-to-back, and face-to-face respectively, and separated by pendants standing out from four small winged angel heads.
1573. (50) Handbell at the Diocesan Museum of Saint Pölten. Inscriptions: O MATER DEI MEMENTO MEI. PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT. 1573.
Decorative motifs: Orpheus charming the animals. 176 1574. Bell once part of the fire collection of M. de Cannart of Hamale, at Mechelen.
Inscriptions: O MATER DEI MEMENTO MEI PETRUS GHEINIUS ME FECIT 1574.
Decorative motifs: Badge of Mechelen. Orpheus charming the animals.
1574. (47). Bell with handle, formed by a group of 3 children back-to- back, belonging to the Episcopal Museum in Haarlem.
Inscriptions: LOF GOD VAN AL PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1574.
Decorative motifs: Biblical figures and ornaments.
1574. Bell with handle, made of acanthus leaves, Cluny Museum, Paris, No. 6255. H. 0.12m.
Inscriptions:
Upper: ✠ LOF GOT VAN AL. Lower, preceded by the shield of Mechelen: PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1574.
Decorative motifs: The representation of the Annunciation.
1574. A bell, No. 818, adorned with the scene of the Annunciation,
177 at the Cinquantenaire Park Museum, Brussels, bears two inscriptions:
Upper: O MATER DEI MEMENTO MEI.
Lower, preceded by the shield of Mechelen: PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1574.
H. 0.08m without the handle, which is a dummy, D. 0.09m.
1574. (47). Bell with handle, made of 3 acanthus leaves, belonging to A. O. Van Kerkwyk, The Hague.
Inscriptions: LOF GOD VAN AL. PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1574.
Decorative motifs: Angels, vases of flowers, etc. (probably the representation of the Annunciation).
1574. (48) Bell with handle, formed by two naked children back-to back.
Inscriptions: LOF GOD VAN AL. PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1574.
Decorative motifs :Orpheus charming the animals.
1574. Handbell in the catalogue of sale by A. de Bruyne in Mechelen, 1890. H. 0.12m.
Inscriptions: LOF GOD VAN AL. PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1574.
178 1574. Bell with rough handle, at the Museum of the Archaeological Society in Leeuwaarden.
Inscriptions: Upper: LOF GODT VAN AL. Lower, preceded by the shield of Mechelen: PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1574.
On the body, between the two legends, the representation of the Annunciation. The characters are separated by ornamental motifs.
1574. (49) Bell in Quercy. PETRUS GHEINEUS 1574.
1575. (51). Bell with handle, formed of three children back-to-back, belonging to Mr. Paul du Chatellier, at Kernuz Castle (Finistère). H 0.085m, H. of handle, 0.04m, D. 0.09m.
Inscriptions: LOF GODT VAN AL. PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1575.
Decorative motifs: On the body, between the two legends, the representation of the Annunciation, by the Archangel Gabriel and the Virgin, separated by a beautiful vase of lilies. Kneeling on a on a prie-dieu, the Virgin holds her right hand on her chest and the left hand on an open book. The standing angel is holding an object which is difficult to identify - a sceptre presumably.
1576. Handbell number 6254, at the Cluny Museum, Paris. H. 0.01m. Inscriptions: 179 Upper: O MATER DEI MEMENTO MEI. Lower: PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1576
Decorative pattern: The Annunciation.
1576. (44) Bell belonging to the late Mr. Terlinden of Mechelen. Inscriptions: O MATER DEI MEMENTO MEI PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1576.
Decorative motifs: Badge of Mechelen. Orpheus charming the animals, represented by a monkey, a lion, a rabbit, a fox, an owl, a sphinx and birds on foliage.
1576. Bell without handle, at the Cluny Museum,Paris.
Inscriptions: Upper: O MATER DEI MEMENTO MEI Lower: PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1576.
On the body, the representation of the Annunciation. H.0.085m, D. 0.085m.
1577. Handbell belonging to the Canon van den Gheyn in Ghent. H. 0.12m, D. 0.14m.
Inscription: PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1577.
The legend is placed at the top and preceded by the arms of Mechelen.
Decorative motifs: At the crown: a garland of Gothic lilies. On the upper part: 180 The representation of the Annunciation by the Archangel Gabriel with the Virgin kneeling in front of a prie-dieu upon which she has her right hand. Between them a vase of lilies. In the empty parts: 3 lion heads with branches. On the lower part: Orpheus charming animals represented by a dog, a monkey, a rabbit, a bird, a bear, a sphinx and a lion.
1577. A bell, chipped at the top and without handle, in the Municipal Museum of Mechelen. H. 0.08m, D. 0.09m.
Inscriptions:
Upper: O MATER DEI MEMENTO MEI Lower: PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1577.
Decorative motifs: The coat of arms of Mechelen is reproduced in each inscription. On the body, the scene of Orpheus playing the violin and charming the animals represented in the following order: dog, monkey, bird on foliage, rabbit, stork, bear, sphinx, another bird on foliage and lion.
1583. (47) Bell belonging to Mr. J. A. Frederiks, architect in The Hague. Inscriptions:
Upper: PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT M D XXXIII. Lower: CONCORDIA PARVAE CRESCUNT.
Decorative motifs: Bunches of grapes and foliage.
181 1583. Brass bell, without handle, at the Museum of the Archaeological Society, in Leeuwaarden.
Inscriptions: Upper, preceded by a Mechelen crest: BURCHMEESTER JAN DE LEEU.
Lower, preceded by a Mechelen crest: PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1583.
On the body, the representation of Orpheus charming the animals including a hare, a stork, a bear, a sphinx, a lion, a dog, a monkey, a bird on foliage.
1585. (?) Bell with handle, belonging to Mr. Canon van den Gheyn, Ghent. H. 0.075m, D. 0.08m.
Inscriptions: Upper: LOF GOT BOVEN AL Lower: PETRUS GHEYNES ME FECIT 15o5.
Decorative motifs: The representation of the Annunciation by the Archangel Gabriel separated by a vase with lilies, from the Virgin sitting holding a book on her knees. In the empty parts: 3 heads of winged angels.
Canon van den Gheyn, who kindly communicated these details, pointed out that above the o from 15o5 there seems to be a scratch, so the upper part of the figure appears to have been removed. The zero can therefore have been a 6 or an 8.
1588. Handbell at the Museum of Steen, Antwerp, with a handle of 182 3 large faces composed of Renaissance ornaments. H. 0.13m with handle; without handle 0.075m, D. 0.09m.
Inscriptions: O MATER DEI MEMENTO MEI PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1588.
Decorative motifs: The coat of arms of Mechelen preceding the two legends. The representation of the Annunciation by the Archangel Gabriel, the Virgin and the vase of lilies. Each subject is separated by a Renaissance mascaron.
1588. Bell with handle, consisting of 2 naked children, at the Mechelen Municipal Museum. H. With handle, 0.12m; H. without handle 0.075m, D. 095m.
Inscriptions: Upper: O MATER DEI MEMENTO MEI. Lower: PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECITR ME 1588.
Decorative motifs: The coat of arms of Mechelen, reproduced in each inscription. Orpheus charming the same animals and in the same order, as on the bell of 1577 in the Museum of Mechelen. The facsimile is at the head of this chapter.
1588. Bell belonging to Mr. J Wittmann, Mechelen, mutilated handle. H. without handle 0.08m.
Inscriptions: O MATER DEI MEMENTO MEI. PETRUS GHEIEUS ME FECIT 1588.
The letter N is missing in the word Gheineus. Decorative motifs: Arms of Mechelen in front of the upper inscription.
183 Arms of Mechelen between two fleur-de-lis in front of the lower inscription.
The representation of the Annunciation by the Archangel standing, the Virgin and the vase of lilies in this order, each subject separated by a mascaron placed against the upper inscription.
1589. (11) Bell belonging to Mr. Barbaud, in Bressuire (Deux Sèvres).
Inscriptions: Upper: LOF GOD VAN AL. Lower, preceded by the shield of Mechelen: PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1589.
Decorative motifs: Orpheus charming the animals, such as, bear, lion, sphinx, etc.
1590. Handbell with iron handle, at St. Rombout, Mechelen. H. 0.110m, D. 0.125m.
Single inscription around the top and preceded by the coat of arms of Mechelen. PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1590.
On the body of the bell and, at the very top, against the legend, the ordinary figures of the representation of the Annunciation alternate with mascarons; the kneeling archangel, the Virgin and the vase of lilies in this order. On the lower edge, instead of an inscription, a frieze formed of two foliages repeated all around.
184 1591. (46)
Handbell in Dover [England].
Inscription: PETRUS GRIENEUS ME FECIT 1491 (?)
The date is probably wrong, we presume it reads 1591. Decorative motifs: The Annunciation.
1591.
A bell, having been part of the old collection of A. DeBruyne, sold in Mechelen in 1890. H. 0.14m.
Inscriptions: O MATER DEI MEMENTO MEI PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1591.
Decorative motifs: Imperial arms with two-headed eagle, repeated three times.
1592. (52)
Bell with handle, formed of 3 children back-to-back, in the Town Hall in Goeree.
Inscription: PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1592.
Decorative motifs: The representation of the Annunciation.
PETER III.
1600. (30)
Bell used formerly at meetings of The Fraternity of the Virgin, in the college of Termonde, now at the Dean's.
185 Inscription: PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN HEFT MI GHEGOTEN 1600. D. M. BELLE VAN ONSER LIEVER VROUWEN BROERSCHP.
1608.
Missing bell, formerly belonging to the church of Saint Peter in Mechelen, where it served to accompany the priest carrying the last Sacraments to the sick. It was provided by Peter van den Ghein in exchange for another, for which an extra 20 sous was paid.1
1610. (44)
Bell belonging to Mr. Van's Turnhout’s collection. H. 0.14m.
Inscription: PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN ME FECIT M D CX.
Decorative pattern: The Annunciation.
PETER IV.
1651. (7).
A small bell at the Cinquantenaire Museum in Brussels.
PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN ME FECIT 1651.
1 Accounts of the church of St Peter, f° 51 vo. Item on May 21. Paid to Mr Peeter van den Gheyne, for the bell, which the priest takes to the Last Holy Sacrament, for which ...... xx st. 186 161. (14)
Handbell at the Steen Museum, Antwerp. H. 0.14m.
Wrong and unintelligible inscription:
PIETR. VAN DEN GHEYN ME FECIT 161. STEVENS DUGNES ME JONQ.
Decorative motifs: Orpheus charming the animals represented by a rabbit, a stork, a bear, a lion, a sphinx, a dog and a monkey.
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187
IV. – Mortars
Apothecaries and housewives made constant use of these objects, when the spices were not, as in our time, mechanically crushed.
The founders applied themselves to give the mortars a decorative aspect. Here is a specimen taken from the pile.
What you should admire above all is the elegance of the curve and the graceful decoration. Ornamentation usually consists of one or two decorative friezes that circle around the mortar. Those which are reproduced below are found on a large number of mortars.
188
An inscription or legend tells us the year of manufacture and the name of the founder. This legend appears sometimes in Latin, sometimes in Flemish. The Latin formula, which is by far the most common, is usually the same:
PETRUS VAN DEN GHEIN ME FECIT.
Rarely, as on a mortar of 1573, in the pharmacy of van Melckebeke, in Mechelen, we read: PETRUS GHEINEUS, exactly as on the bells. It is true that this mortar is small and there is not enough space to use the other formula. The Flemish formula, always the same too, reads:
PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN HEFT MI GHEGOTEN (INT JAER)
Sometimes, words from both languages
189 appear in the same inscription. This is the form adopted by the van den Gheins bearing the name of Jan who sign:
JAN VAN DEN GHEIN ME FECIT.
Jan III, however, varies his first name and adopts the form HANS. On those which bear the name of Peter, it is very rare that this case presents itself. On some mortars, however, like the one of 1637, at the museum of Cinquantenaire in Brussels, we find:
PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN ME FECIT.
When space permits, the inscription is preceded by the three- striped shield of Mechelen, reproduced here:
The name of the founder is sometimes replaced by those of two spouses, to whom the mortar was offered as a wedding gift. At other times, the owner's name replaces or accompanies that of the founder, as can be seen on the mortar from 1543, at the Cinquantenaire Museum, in Brussels:
JAN DEMON DE MI MAKEN.
Exceptionally one finds, at the same time as the name of the founder, a godly legend, identical to those
190 found on the bells. This was so on the mortar of 1589, sold at the Minard sale, in Ghent, in 1883:
O MATER DEI MEMENTO MEI.
The home of the founder is also indicated on a mortar from 1553, belonging to the Cinquantenaire Museum in Brussels.
TE MECHLEN AEN DUEVERSTE PORT DAER HEFT MI PEETER VAN DEN GHEIN GHEGOTEN.
Finally, the founder sometimes replaced his first name with that of one of his children or another member of his family, giving them, by pure fantasy, the status of founder. That is how legends like these are explained:
LIENKE VAN DEN GHEIN ME FECIT. M D LV 1 MAEIKEN VAN DEN GHEIN ME FECIT. M D LV (47).
Some unsigned mortars carry devices, sayings or sentences in various languages, sometimes also subjects such as Orpheus charming the animals. We cannot certify that they come from van den Ghein's hands; we have never seen that type with a van den Ghein name on it. The letters used are sometimes Gothic capitals, sometimes renaissance. Neglect in the choice of letters and also in their placement, sometimes gives us faulty inscriptions. A mortar from 1544, from the Cinquantenaire Museum in Brussels, of which we spoke above, and which carries
1 Cf. Ancien Pays de Looz, p. 10. 191 the name of the donor, Jan Demon, presents twice the reversed letter G instead of D, a first time, in the name VAN ꓨEN GHEIN, a second time in the name ꓨEMON. At other times, the letter C replaced the letter E, for example, on a mortar of Hendrick van den Ghein of 1500, belonging to Mr Schippers in Mechelen. An example of negligence in the placement can be found on a mortar of 1577, belonging to Baron de Vinck, it reads PETURS instead of PETRUS .
It also happens that the transcription of legends is wrongly made by those who read them. We quoted, speaking of Hendrick van den Ghein's works, the mortar belonging to the Archaeological Society of Bruges and exhibited at the hotel Gruuthuusen, in 1905, on which we read HENNEKIN instead of HENDERIC.
Wrong reading of legends inscribed on mortars can give rise to interpretations of the highest fantasy. We found one quite apposite to be reproduced here, and which appeared in a Belgian newspaper. If we believe this newspaper1, we would have found a Peter van den Ghein mortar at a Greek doctor’s in Damask. Here are the terms with which this object was labelled:
"An autograph document of the coronation of the Messiah, work authentic of the Saviour, was discovered towards the northern part of Galilee, Palestine. This is the emblem of the foundation of Christianity. It consists of a gaping bronze vase with a shrunken bottom of 2 kg, engraved all around is an inscription whose characters, of an original type, appear in Greek and Latin. It is furthermore
1 Le Bien Public, edited in Ghent, no du 17 August 1907. 192 crowned by a series of symbolic figures representing 12 cherubim who, by their attitude to a series of 6 alternative altars, symbolize the adoption of the Messianic cult born of the 12 Apostles. The text preceded by a lyre, is thus conceived:
PETRUS GADDER OLEIN MEÆDIT M(essias) D (omini) D(ei) D(ivus) D(ecreti) D(ei) L’ xxxiii."
It is easy to restore the badly described inscription and to find in the text the detail of the decorative ornaments usually used on the van den Ghein mortars. This is how that the figures representing 12 cherubs, etc., are all really the mermaids hanging in a vase, which pattern is repeated six times in forming the frieze, as on the second of the friezes reproduced above. The lyre preceding the text is the three- stripe shield of Mechelen, the gothic C of the time was taken for D and the corrected inscription must read:
PETRUS VAN DEN GHEIN ME FECIT M CCCCC LXXXIII.
Sometimes cast in brass, mortars are more usually in the sonorous bronze, which was used to make bells. They also produce a pure and mellow sound when struck. Their usual form is that of an up-turned bell. There are few van den Ghein mortars that have handles. We only know of one, from 1538 cast by Peter I, formerly part of the collection of Fr. Aug. De Bruyne, in Mechelen, which had handles shaped like animal heads.
193 Their sizes are very varied, generally of height of 0.10m to 0.12m and a diameter of 0.14m to 0.15m; they range in proportion from most tiny, like that at the Van Melckeheke pharmacy in Mechelen, which measures 0.05m in height and 0.065m in diameter, up to the most respectable proportions of 0.32m in height and of 0.435m in diameter, like that of 1544, in the Cinquantenaire Museum, Brussels, bearing the name of the owner Jan Demon, already mentioned above.
We found a total of 93 mortars, bearing the name of one of the van den Gheins. One of these is signed by Jan, but without a date. Here are some numbers for each of them.
JAN I (1534-1543), nothing has been found. JAN II (1546-1573), 14 mortars, the oldest of which is from 1546, and the last from 1572. JAN III (1588-1626), 5 mortars including the oldest of 1588 and the last of 1615. JAN IV (1665-1697), 2 mortars including one of 1677, and the other from 1681. PETER I (1528-1561), 20 mortars, the oldest of which is 1532, and the last of 1561. PETER II (1561-1598), 39 mortars including the oldest of 1563, and the last of 1597. PETER III (1595-1618), a single mortar of 1610. PETER IV (1626-1654), 9 mortars, the oldest of which is 1628, and the last of 1651. HENDRICK (1588-1602), two mortars, one of 1590, and the other of 1597.
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194
V. - Other objects cast by the van den Gheins
Van den Ghein also produced, apart from the pieces already mentioned, other objects in bronze or brass. The municipal accounts, those of the guilds and corporations and churches mention different objects provided by them.
Let us mention, among others, some copper work, not designated, which was executed on behalf of the City, by Jan II, (Municipal account 1564-1565, f° 280, v°), and a supply of eight copper candlesticks, made for the church of Heyst- opden-Berg in 1671, by Jan IV (source 39). These objects are difficult to find.
However, there still exists at the Municipal Museum of Mechelen, a very interesting collection of 23 bronze pieces forming different types of Mechelen capacity measurement, discontinued in 1401, and which were cast in 1573 for the Count of the City, by Peter II. Numbering 24, when the Magistrate ordered them from the founder, they weighed together 58 pounds, for which he received in payment the sum of 8 sous per pound of weight.
These 24 pieces formed three similar series of 8 measures. One of these series is reproduced in the picture opposite.
Series of measures in the Municipal Museum of Mechelen cast in 1573 by Peter van den Ghein II.
195 The smallest measure of one of the series is missing from the collection, and apart from slight damage to the handles, the 23 pieces which remain are well preserved and of a very artistic type.
The largest measurement at 0.2m in height has a capacity of about 2800 cubic centimetres. It bears two inscriptions, each preceded by the shield of Mechelen. The upper reads:
OVSANSIE VAN INT JAER 1401.
Which means: (Made according to the) usage of the year 1401.
The lower inscription:
PETRUS VAN ꓨEN GHEIN ME FECIT 1573.
The second measure is 0.155m high; its capacity is about 1400 cc. It bears two inscriptions, each preceded by the shield of Mechelen.
The upper: OUSANCIE VANT JAER 1401.
The lower: PETRUS VAN DEN GHEIN ME FECIT 1573.
The third measure is 0.12m high with a capacity of about 690 cc. It bears two inscriptions, each preceded by the shield of Mechelen.
The upper: PETRUS GHEINEUS ME FECIT 1573.
The lower: OUSANCIE VAN INT JAER ONS HEEREN 1401.
The fourth measure is 0.12m high and capacity about 340 cc. 196 A single inscription at the bottom, not preceded by the arms of Mechelen,
OUSANCIE VANT JAER ONS HE EREN 1401.
The fifth measure is 0.075m high with a capacity of 172 cc. A single inscription at the bottom, preceded by the shield of Mechelen:
OUSANSIE VANT JAER 1401.
The sixth measure is 0,05m high with a capacity of 85 cc. One inscription, preceded by the Mechelen shield:
OUSANSIE VAN INT JAER 1401.
The seventh measure is 0.04m high with a capacity of 48 cc. An inscription, preceded by the shield of Mechelen:
⚜ ANNO ⚜ 1401 ⚜
The eighth measure is 0.03m high with a capacity of 25 cc. As inscription behind the shield of Mechelen:
ANNO 1401.
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197
Bibliographic Index
1. F. Steurs. Eenige aanteekeningen rakende de Mechelsche klokgieters. Mechelen, H. Dierickx-Beke, zonen. 1877. 2. (J. Baten). Historische bijdragen over de klokken en de beiaarden der parochie van O.-L.-Vrouwe over de Dyle. Mechelen, E. en I. Van Moer. s. cl. 3. Dr G. Van Doorslaer. Le carillon et les carillonneurs de l’église N.-D. au-delà de la Dyle; dans le Bulletin du Cercle Archéologique de Malines, t. V. 1894. 4. L. Van Lerberghe et I. Ronsse. Audenaersche Mengelingen. 6 volumes. 1845-1854. 5. J. A. Hoefer. Aanteekeningen betreffende de klokkespelen van Middelburg ; dans Archief van het Zeeuwsch Genootschap der Wetenschappen. Middelburg. 1899. 6. I. Uldall. Danmarks middelalderlige kirkeklokken. Kjobehavn. 1906. 7. F. Donnet. Variétés campanaires, II; dans les Annales de VAcadémie royale d’Archéologie de Belgique. 1909. 8. Tarlier et Wauters. Histoire et géographie des communes beiges. 9. F. Van den Brande. Korte beschrijving der kerk van Vilvoorden. Mechelen. 1856.
198 10. S. De Schrijver. Quelques anciennes cloches d’église de fabrication belge en Italie et en Angleterre ; dans les Annales de la Société d’Archéologie de Bruxelles. 1902. 11. Roger Rodiére. Epigraphie du département du Pas-de- Calais. Arras. 1904. 12. E. Feys et D. Van de Casteei.e. Histoire d’Oudenbourg. 2 vol. 1873. 13. Edm. Yan der Straeten. La musique aux Pays-Bas, avant le xixe siècle. 8 tomes. 14. F. Donnet. Les cloches d’Anvers. 1899. 15. A. Leci.er (abbé). Etude sur les cloches de l’ancien diocese de Limoges. 1902. 16. Fr. De Potter en J. Broeckaert. Geschiedenis der gemeenten der Provincie Oost-Vlaanderen. 17. F. J. Raymaekers. Het kerkelijk Diest. Leuven, K. Peeters. 18. G. Van Arkel en A. W. Weissmann. Noord-Hollandsche oudheden. Amsterdam. T. III. 19. Jos. Berthelé. La cloche italienne de l’église de Charlysur- Marne et les cloches hollandaises de l'église de Saulchery (Aisne)-, dans les Annales de la Société Historique et Arch, de Château-Thierry. 1898. 20 Ed. Van Even. Louvain monicmental. 21. G. H. Van Borssum Waalkes Friesche klokkeopschriften. Leeuwarden 3 deelen. 1885-1891-1895. 22. W. O. J. Nieuwenkamp en J. G. Veldheer. Oude Hollandsche steden aan de Zuiderzee. 1897. 23. Inventaire des objets d’art existant dans les edifices publics des communes de Varrondissement de Bruxelles. Bruxelles. E. Guyot 1904. 24. F. Steurs, De toren van Sint-Romboutskerk te Mechelen. 1877. 25. Dr G. Van Doorslaer. Le carillon et les carillonneurs de
199 la tour Saint-Rombout à Matines. 1893; dans le Bulletin du Cercle Arch, de Malines. 26 Fr de Potter en J. Broeckaert. Geschiedenis der stad Aclst. 27. F. A. Hoefer Het klokkenspel van Veere. 1895. 28. Inventaire des chartes et autres documents de la ville de Louvain. 1164-1793, p. 239. 29. P.-J. Goetschalckx. Bijdragen tot de geschiedenis bijzonderlijk van het aloude hertogdom Brabant. 30. P. G. de Maesschalck. Klokkenagie der gemeenten van het arrondissement en voormalig land Dendermonde. Dendermonde, Aug. De Schepper. 1899. 31. A. Bergmann. Geschiedenis der stad Lier. Antwerpen, J. E. Buschmann. 1873. 32. J. Neghy. L'exportation des cloches des fondeurs belges au XVIe siècle; dans Précis historiques. 1892. 33. J. Russell-Walker. Pre-reformation churches in Fife and het Lothians. Vol. 1. Fifeshire. 34. A. L. Van Hoorebeke. Historique de la commune et de l’église de Vosselaere, dans Messager des sciences historiques. 1845. 35. P. I). Kuyi,. Notice historique sur la paroisse de Buyseghem aujourd'hui Edegem près d’Anvers ; dans les Annales pour servir à l’histoire ecclésiastique de Belgique. 1869. 36. P. V. Bets. Bijzonderheden over de beyaerden van Thienen; dans Mengelingen voor de geschiedenis van Braband. Leuven, Drukkerij C. J. Fonteyn. 1871. 37. E. Adriaensen en G. Segers. De collegiale kerk van de H. Katharina te Hoogstraeten. Impr. Van Hoof’. 1895. 38. Henne et Wauters. Histoire de la ville de Bruxelles. 39. L. Liekens. Geschiedenis der gemeenten Heist-op-den berg, Boisschot, Hallaer en Gestel. Mechelen, L. en A. Godenne. 1898. 40. F. Donnet. Variétés campanaires. I, dans les Annales de l’Acad. Roy. d’Arch. de Belgique.
200 41. D. Be Grave. Geschiedenis der gemeente Assche. 1900. 42. J. Th. De Raadt. Ber kier et ses seigneurs; dans Annales de l’Académie royale d’Arch. de Belgique. 1889. 43. de Marsy (le comte). Les sonnettes des fondeurs malino is; dans le Compte-rendu du Congrès d’Archéologie de Malines. 1897. 44. L. Teugels-Opdebeeck. Le commerce et l’industrie de Malines à l'Exposition universelle d’Anvers. 1885. Typ. A. Olbrechts, Malines. 45. Catalogue de l’Exposition nationale, à Bruxelles, en 1880, IVe section. Industries d’Art. Typ. Ve Ch. Van der Auwera. 46. Em. Travers. Les expositions rétrospectives à Londres; dans Bulletin Monumental, tome LVIII. 1893. 47. J. A. Frederiks. Ten loons telling van oude hopericerken. Middelburg. 1904. J. C. en W. Altorffer. 48. M. de Cassaigneau de Saint-Félix. Une cloche du xvie siècle; dans Bulletin de la Société Arch, de Montauhan. 1887. 49. Bulletin Archéologique. 1887. 50. Schubart. Die handglocken des Johannes a fine ; dans Christliches Kunstblatt. 1903. 51. L. Morillot (abbé). Etude sur l’emploi des clochettes chez les anciens et depuis le triomphe du christianisme. Dijon, Damangeot. 1888. 52. J. C. Overvoorde. Aanteekeningen over Goeree en Overflakkee; dans Bull, van den Nederl. Oudheidsk. Bond. 1907. 53. Catalogue de l’Exposition de Mons, 1885. 54. de Rivières (le baron). Les cloches, clochettes et mortierspilons des fondeurs van den Gheyn; dans le Bulletin Arch, et Hist, de la Société Arch, de Tarne et Garonne. 1903.
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201
Table of place names
N.B. - The name of the city of Malines [Mechelen], which is repeated on almost every page, is not included here.[All names are in their French form, so Anvers = Antwerp etc. [Ed.]
Antwerp
202
Dover
203
204
Table of names of founders
N.B. - The names of van den Ghein of Mechelen, which can be found on almost every page, are not included here. [The names are in their French form, so Pierre = Peter etc. Ed.]
205
General index
The van den Ghein Family 3 Willem 9 Jan I 13 Anton 14 Peter I 15 Jan II 17 Peter II 18 Hendrick 21 Peter III 23 Jan III 25 Peter IV 27 Jan IV 28 Annexes 30 Their Works 63 I. Bells 64 Willem 66 Jan I 69 Anton 73 Peter I 74 Jacob 91 Jan II 92
206
Peter II 95 Hendrick 116 Peter III 119 Jan III 131 Peter IV 141 Jan IV 154 II. Cannons 161 III. Handbells 166 IV. Mortars 187 V. Other objects 194 Bibliographical index 197 Index of place names 201 Index of founders 204
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