First Campanile bells go back after restoration
THE first five of the Campanile’s 23 bells were hoisted back into the historic building yesterday – just 12 weeks after being removed to be refurbished.
The first phase of the cup-shaped carillon’s refurbishment will be completed over the next few days, weather permitting.
Ibhayi Contracting site manager Mark Hamilton said the bells’ journey back into the building was on track.
“This is the first phase,” he said.
“The smaller bells will be pulled through the shaft to the top, where they will be reattached in the top row, and the bigger bells will form the bottom row.
“The heavier bells will be hoisted outside with a crane, which we will only be able to do weather-permitting as safety is key in the high-risk work we are doing.”
The bells, which weigh about 16.4 tons in total, are being stored at The Tramways building.
The first five bells weigh about 670kg.
Mandela Bay Development Agency (MBDA) planning and development manager Dorelle Sapere said: “We are very excited that we have reached the next phase and that the bells can now go back to their cradle on top of the Campanile.
“It is another milestone in the restoration [process] that has been completed and it really is just the pneumatic work that needs to be done so the bells can play again.”
The biggest bell – C bell – weighs about 4.6 tons and will be the last one returned to the Campanile.
It can still be viewed at The Tramways building.
“The public will not be able to view the bells once they are up in the cradle, but we are hoping to recreate the old cradle with all the bits that will not be used,” Sapere said.
“We are going to put some artificial bells in it to show people what the actual bells look like further up.”
Once completed, the Campanile will boast a lift, LED lights in the window and bells that can play merry tunes.
‘ Safety is key in the high-risk work we are doing