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Refectory Bell

13th century
On view at The Met Cloisters in Gallery 07
The bell is inscribed in Latin TINNIO PRANSVRIS CENATVRIS BIBITVRIS (“I ring for breakfast, dinner, and drinks”). Smaller than the taller and more familiar church bell, this rare refectory bell evokes the sounds of life in the medieval cloister. In addition to the inscription, the bell is decorated with roundels depicting two angels, a winged lion and the Agnus Dei, or Lamb of God. The shape is without precedent in surviving bells, but it can be seen in a mid-thirteenth-century manuscript depicting bell ringing and other music making.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Refectory Bell
  • Date: 13th century
  • Culture: German
  • Medium: Copper alloy
  • Dimensions: 9 13/16 × 13 3/4 in., 50.4 lb. (24.9 × 35 cm, 22.9 kg)
  • Classification: Metalwork-Copper alloy
  • Credit Line: The Cloisters Collection, 2014
  • Object Number: 2014.87
  • Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters

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