A ship's bell is struck every half hour to mark time through a watch. One bell sounds 30 minutes into a four-hour watch, two bells at the hour, and so on until eight bells mark the end of the watch at 0400, 0800, 1200, 1600, 2000, or midnight. The system grew out of the half-hour sandglass: each time the glass was turned, the bell was struck once more to show how many half-hours had passed.
What Is a Ship's Bell and Why Do Ships Ring Them?
A ship's bell is a cast bell, usually brass or bronze, mounted near the bridge or on the forecastle and traditionally engraved with the ship's name. The bell has served three purposes for centuries:
- Timekeeping, striking the half hours of each watch so the whole crew knew the time
- Signaling, sounding in fog and, historically, as a fire alarm
- Ceremony, marking arrivals, departures, christenings, and memorials
Before clocks were reliable at sea, time aboard was measured with a half-hour sandglass. A ship's boy turned the glass and struck the bell each time it ran out, according to the US Navy's history blog on ship's bells. The number of strokes told everyone aboard how far through the watch the ship had come, which is why the bell, not the clock, became the voice of shipboard time.
The Watch Bell System Explained
The traditional seagoing day is divided into watches of four hours, with the 1600 to 2000 period split into two shorter "dog watches." Dividing it creates an odd number of watches, so crews rotate through different hours each day, and everyone gets time for an evening meal.
| Watch | Hours |
|---|---|
| First watch | 2000 to 0000 |
| Middle watch | 0000 to 0400 |
| Morning watch | 0400 to 0800 |
| Forenoon watch | 0800 to 1200 |
| Afternoon watch | 1200 to 1600 |
| First dog watch | 1600 to 1800 |
| Last dog watch | 1800 to 2000 |
How many bells in a watch (1 through 8)
A full four-hour watch contains eight bells, one added each half hour. Strokes are sounded in pairs so they are easy to count by ear.
| Bells | Time into the watch | Strike pattern | Clock times (four-hour watches) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 bell | 30 minutes | 1 | 0030, 0430, 0830, 1230, 1630, 2030 |
| 2 bells | 1 hour | 2 | 0100, 0500, 0900, 1300, 1700, 2100 |
| 3 bells | 1.5 hours | 2 + 1 | 0130, 0530, 0930, 1330, 1730, 2130 |
| 4 bells | 2 hours | 2 + 2 | 0200, 0600, 1000, 1400, 1800, 2200 |
| 5 bells | 2.5 hours | 2 + 2 + 1 | 0230, 0630, 1030, 1430, 1830, 2230 |
| 6 bells | 3 hours | 2 + 2 + 2 | 0300, 0700, 1100, 1500, 1900, 2300 |
| 7 bells | 3.5 hours | 2 + 2 + 2 + 1 | 0330, 0730, 1130, 1530, 1930, 2330 |
| 8 bells | 4 hours | 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 | 0400, 0800, 1200, 1600, 2000, 0000 |
The dog watches vary by navy. After the 1797 mutiny at the Nore, in which five bells in the last dog watch was reportedly the signal, Royal Navy ships changed the pattern: Britannica records one bell at 1830, two at 1900, three at 1930, and eight at 2000.
What "8 bells" means
Eight bells means the end of a four-hour watch and the moment the relief takes over. On a traditional schedule, it sounds six times a day: at 0400, 0800, 1200, 1600, 2000, and midnight. The phrase has also become a memorial expression. "Eight bells" or "end of watch" is used to honor a mariner who has died.
Ship's Bells in Modern Navigation and Ceremony
Satellite time and bridge clocks replaced bell timekeeping long ago, but the bell still has a legal job and a ceremonial one.
The bell as required sound equipment
Under COLREGs Rule 33, a vessel of 20 meters or more must carry a bell in addition to a whistle, and a vessel of 100 meters or more must also carry a gong. Rule 35 sets how the bell is used in restricted visibility. A vessel at anchor rings the bell rapidly for about five seconds at intervals of not more than one minute, as written in the US Inland Navigation Rules at 33 CFR 83.35. On a vessel of 100 meters or more, the bell sounds forward, and a gong follows aft. Vessels under 12 meters may use another efficient sound signal instead. The full rules appear in the USCG Navigation Rules and Regulations Handbook.
Ceremony and tradition
- New Year's Eve: 16 bells are struck at midnight, eight for the old year and eight for the new, a custom many navies still keep.
- Christenings: in a naval tradition, children are baptized using the inverted ship's bell as a font, and their names may be engraved inside it.
- Decommissioning: when a US Navy ship is decommissioned, its bell passes to the Department of the Navy.
- The Lutine Bell: recovered in 1858 from HMS Lutine, which sank in 1799, the bell at Lloyd's of London was rung once for a lost ship and twice for good news, and is now rung for special occasions.
Ship's Bell Clocks for a Home or Vessel
A ship's bell clock keeps the watch-bell tradition in a single instrument. Instead of striking the hours, it strikes the 8-bell cycle every half hour, running from one bell at 0030 to eight bells at 0400, then repeating through every four hours of the day. Clocks do not follow the dog watch variations.
When choosing a ship's bell clock, three decisions matter:
- Movement. An 8-day mechanical movement is key-wound weekly and delivers the traditional ring. A quartz bell movement runs on a battery and needs no winding.
- Silencer. A bell silencer switch stops the chime at night or in quiet rooms. Weems & Plath ship's bell clocks sold by ANS include one.
- Finish and size. Solid forged brass suits a traditional bridge or study. Chrome and maintenance-free brass finishes suit modern interiors and damp environments. Dial sizes range from compact bulkhead clocks to larger display pieces.
The Weems & Plath range in the ANS clocks collection includes the Atlantis 8-Day Ship's Bell Clock, the Atlantis Quartz Ship's Bell Clock, and the Endurance II 115 Quartz Ship's Bell Clock. Traditional hand-struck bells, from 6 to 12 inches in polished brass or chrome with monkey's fist lanyards, are listed in the ship's bells collection.
Bell clocks keep time for the crew, but navigation time was always kept separately. Marine chronometers held Greenwich time for celestial fixes, and their daily error was recorded in a chronometer rate book. The ANS overview of ship's clocks, bell clocks, and tide clocks covers the wider family of marine timepieces.
Shop Ship's Bell Clocks
A ship's bell clock brings the rhythm of the watch into a home, office, or wheelhouse, and a traditional bell remains required equipment on larger vessels. ANS stocks both, along with mounting brackets and lanyards.
Shop ship's bell clocks in the ANS clocks collection, or contact ANS at +1 (954) 522-3321 or sales@amnautical.com for help choosing a clock or bell.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does "8 bells" mean on a ship?
Eight bells marks the end of a four-hour watch, sounding at 0400, 0800, 1200, 1600, 2000, and midnight on a traditional watch schedule.
What time is 8 bells on a ship?
Eight bells is 4:00, 8:00, or 12:00, morning or evening. Each of those times ends a four-hour watch.
How many bells are rung in a full watch?
Eight. One bell is added every half hour, from one bell at 30 minutes to eight bells at four hours, struck in pairs for easy counting.
Do modern ships still use bell time-keeping?
Not for keeping time, which now comes from bridge clocks and satellite systems. Ships of 20 meters or more must still carry a bell under COLREGs Rule 33, and many navies keep bell ceremonies alive.
Why are bells struck in pairs?
Pairs make the count easy to recognize by ear. Five bells, for example, sound as two, two, and one.
Where can I buy a ship's bell clock?
ANS sells Weems & Plath ship's bell clocks in mechanical 8-day and quartz versions, along with traditional brass and chrome ship's bells, through its clocks and bells collections at amnautical.com.
