John David Mini Ring

History

The John David Mini Ring is a set of eight miniature bells, purchased from Matthew Higby & Co in England. Acquired in 2015, the mini ring is a scaled-down version of regular church bells, with the tenor weighing only 4.3kg. Because they are so small, they lack certain features (such as stays and sliders) and are much quicker to learn on. As a result, it is primarily used for teaching and demonstrating ringing, but is also sometimes used for practices and quarter peals.

The initial cost of the bells was covered by generous donations from many ringers, the Australia and New Zealand Association of Bellringers (ANZAB), and the Wellington City Council. The bells were cast by Mark Prior, and tuned and hung by Matthew Higby & Co. The ring is named after John and David Caldwell, representing two of the four generations of bell ringers in the Caldwell family in New Zealand. David rang at St Matthew's in Auckland and at Hamilton Cathedral. His son, John, also learned to ring but passed away at a young age. John's son, Andrew, became the fourth generation to ring when he learnt at Wellington Cathedral.

Initially, it had six bells, each named after a donor - bells 4 to 8 (previously 1-6) were named after past and present Wellington ringers Rei Ngatai, Christopher Jarman, Terry Barrett, Pleasance Purser and Gerald McIlhone. The third was named Gill, after the wife of Gerald McIlhone. In December 2015, two more bells were ordered from Matthew Higby to expand the ring to eight. The new bells were finally received in September 2017 after a long delay. This augmentation was made possible by generous donations, particularly one from Lian von Wantoch, an American diplomat and a ringer. She donated the money as a thank-you for the warm welcome she received from the Wellington ringing community. The second bell was named Harvey, after her father, Harvey von Wantoch. The new treble was named Nathan, after the grandson of Derek Williams, a Wellington ringer.