Swiss cowbells crafted in traditional way

Stars and Stripes reports on a Swiss craftsman who still creates cowbells in the old traditional way.

Swiss cows usually wear bells when they are grazing in mountain pastures so their farmers can know where they are. Anyone who has visited the Alps can associate the gentle bonging of cowbells with the beige-colored cows grazing on the mountain grass.

Eligius Schelbert is a Glockenschmiede — a bell smith — in the central Swiss town of Muotathal. He makes three kinds of bells, each in 15 sizes, from tiny bells worn by sheep to giant bells usually used for decoration.

Schelbert is following a family tradition that started in 1870. He’s the fourth generation in his family to carry on the bell-making trade. These days he makes most of his bells using steel, which he orders in different degrees of thickness. He cuts down the metal, then hammers the pieces to the required size and welds them together. He follows 26 steps to produce each bell.

When he’s in the mountains, Schelbert says he can recognize the sound of one of his bells.

Read the full story: Swiss craftsman upholds tradition of making bells for bovines

Photo by Christian Perret / Courtesy of Swiss Image