Ship's bells
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Ship's bells are a system to indicate the hour by means of bells, used aboard a ship to regulate the sailors' duty watches.
Unlike civil clock bells, the strikes of the bell do not accord to the number of the hour. Instead, there are eight bells, one for each half-hour of a four-hour watch. Bells would be struck every half-hour, and in a pattern of pairs for easier counting, with any odd bells at the end of the sequence.
The classical system was:
| Number of bells | Middle watch |
Morning watch |
Forenoon watch |
Afternoon watch |
First dog watch |
Last dog watch |
First watch |
| One bell | 0:30 | 4:30 | 8:30 | 12:30 | 16:30 | 18:30 | 20:30 |
| Two bells | 1:00 | 5:00 | 9:00 | 13:00 | 17:00 | 19:00 | 21:00 |
| Three bells | 1:30 | 5:30 | 9:30 | 13:30 | 17:30 | 19:30 | 21:30 |
| Four bells | 2:00 | 6:00 | 10:00 | 14:00 | 18:00 | 22:00 | |
| Five bells | 2:30 | 6:30 | 10:30 | 14:30 | 22:30 | ||
| Six bells | 3:00 | 7:00 | 11:00 | 15:00 | 23:00 | ||
| Seven bells | 3:30 | 7:30 | 11:30 | 15:30 | 23:30 | ||
| Eight bells | 4:00 | 8:00 | 12:00 | 16:00 | 20:00 | 0:00 |
Most of the crew of a ship would be divided up into between two and four groups called watches. Each watch would take its turn with the essential activities of manning the helm, navigating, trimming sails, and keeping a lookout.
The hours between 16:00 and 20:00 are so arranged because that watch (the "dog watch", which is curtailed) was divided into two. The odd number of watches aimed to give each man a different watch each day. It also allows the entire crew of a vessel to eat tea, the normal time being at 1700 with First Dog watchmen eating at 1800.
Some "ship's bell" clocks use a simpler system:
| Number of bells | Hour (a.m. and p.m.) | ||
| One bell | 12:30 | 4:30 | 8:30 |
| Two bells | 1:00 | 5:00 | 9:00 |
| Three bells | 1:30 | 5:30 | 9:30 |
| Four bells | 2:00 | 6:00 | 10:00 |
| Five bells | 2:30 | 6:30 | 10:30 |
| Six bells | 3:00 | 7:00 | 11:00 |
| Seven bells | 3:30 | 7:30 | 11:30 |
| Eight bells | 4:00 | 8:00 | 12:00 |
The term "Eight bells" can also be a salutary way of saying that a sailor's watch is over, for instance, in his or her obituary. It's a nautical euphemism for "finished".
[edit] External links
- British Horological Institute: the broken dog watch is British usage after the Nore mutiny
