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Intellectual Cultural Heritage
73
Little Brass Bell
Traditional little brass bells are used to decorate
houses or Buddhist temples and architecture as wind
chimes because the gentle tinkling sound they make
when moved by the breeze is pleasing to the ears. The
principal production source is located in Khao Loi Mun
Kho Village, Don Tako Sub-district, Mueang Municipal
District of Ratchaburi Province.
Little brass bells made in the foundries in Don
Tako District uses locally found raw materials: clay,
cow’s dried dung, rice husks,
nam man chan and
cow’s fat. The raw materials that have to be brought
from outside the community are: brass alloy for use in
casting bells and the plates of pure brass for making the
hangings under the clappers or
luk fat
. These hangings,
called
Bai Pho
(leaf of a Bodhi tree), are made in the
traditional shape of a Bodhi tree’s leaf, which looks like
an inverted teardrop. One hanging is attached below
each clapper of a bell so that it catches the breeze and
moves the clapper.
The production process starts from making a
model in clay. The model is chased well before being
coated in molten wax. The hook is fixed and the model is
decorated with any motif as desired. Fine clay mixture or
din nuan
(a mixture of finely sieved clay, cow dung and
water) is applied to make what is called a “ceramic shell
mould”. When it is dry, a mixture of clay, sand and rice
husks is used to coat it; and the mould is heated to lose
the wax (lost wax process), leaving a hollow shell inside.
Molten brass alloy is then poured into the hollow ceramic
shell mould and left to cool slowly. The clay mould is
later broken to show a little brass bell inside. The bell is
chased and polished before a clapper and a
bai pho
are
finally attached to the bell.
The cast ing of these l i t t le brass bel l s uses
traditional method and the craftsmen must be skilled
and knowledgeable about the precise size and dimension
of the bell, the clapper and the
bai pho
, which must
correspond well to one another to produce resonating
tinkle that can carry far.