Edward Sellers

This is a great example of an Edward Sellers Rumbler bell.
The Sellers family were York Bellfounders whose earliest member was William who from 1662 had his foundry in Jubbergate. Crotals with the initials ES are credited to Edward or his son. Edward followed William. He died a wealthy man in1724 leaving the Foundry to his sons Richard and Edward. Edward retired and finally sold off the last remnants of the business in 1763. He sadly had left it a little late because he died in November 1764. So I guess there is a fair chance that this bell was made in the first half of the 18th century.Bells like this have long been used as animal bells, probably for cows , sheep or goats. Known as rumbler or crotal bells they must have made quite a noise in their heyday.This bell turned up in a car boot sale. The chap offered it on Ebay with no idea what it was. I had been looking for an Edward Sellers bell for some time and was delighted to get it.The bell is made of bell metal and is 3.5 inches across.