The bells of St John's Co-Cathedral are certainly famous, but has anyone ever given a thought to their condition, or how they are supposed to be maintained? The use of such prestigious bells cannot continue without renovating the centuries-old fittings. It was with this in mind that the Council of the St John's Co-Cathedral Foundation and its Executive Secretary, Dr Claude Busuttil, took the initiative to renovate these bells.

I asked campanologist Kenneth Cauchi, who masterminded the restoration of the priceless set of bells at St John's, what methods were used in this mammoth project.

So tell me more about the bells at St John I ask him

"There are 10 bells in all, three for the clock and the other seven that are used for services. The latter were the ones that had the most wear and tear. There are five in the North belfry and two in the South belfry. You cannot really describe them as a set as they were produced in different periods. However it is indicative that they were all cast in the Order's foundry between 1636 and 1748.

"They were cast by different bronze founders and there are also tantalising bits of information on who might have worked on the bells," Mr Cauchi said.

He then explained the actual history of each individual bell.

"The smallest one was probably cast between 1657 and 1660 in De Redin's time. The second bell was cast in 1671, during Nicolas Cotoner's reign. The third was cast in 1703 and is attributed to Mederico Menville. It was paid by Grand Master Perellos' and is known as the 'Bell of Rhodes'. In 1991, this bell was moved from the back of the steeple to the front so the restorations carried out on it are fairly recent. The fourth bell was cast in 1637 and Grand Master Lascaris paid for it. The fifth, cast by Mederico Menville in 1702 was paid for by Grand Master Perellos, and is popularly known as Tal-Madonna while the sixth was cast by Aloysius Bouchut in 1747. The seventh bell was cast by the same founder, weighs seven tonnes and was cast in 1748," Mr Cauchi told me.

So what was the actual condition of the bells before the process of restoration began?

"These bells had given hundreds of years service to the cathedral and it was obvious that their fittings were in dire need of renovation if we wanted to use them every day. There was substantial wear and tear on the soundbows of some of the bells and any maintenance previously done was not undertaken systematically and methodically.

"I began ringing the bells at St. John's in 1986 when I was just 12 years old so I can remember exactly what the state of the bells was at the time. I can certainly say that

I observed certain slow deterioration in the mechanisms that caused concern.

"One restoration was undertaken by the British forces early in the 20th century when all the clappers of the bells were dismantled and the stirrups were modified with the introduction of a U-belt patched with leather," Mr Cauchi said.

The original system used by the Knights included using the sexual organs of bulls which were obtained from the public abattoir. These were dried in a long and laborious process (‘Jitqaddu’) and occasionally smeared with fat (xaham tas-sonza). The original system was done away with when the British changed it, Mr Cauchi tells me.

What does the restoration process involve?

"The process is still in its first phase and we have concentrated on the fittings supporting the bells for now. One must not forget that two of the bells weigh four and seven tonnes respectively and the fittings date back to at least 1748.

"The bells were hoisted by chain blocks and the original wrought iron pins were examined for electrolytic reactions. We found that the pins of the second largest were heavily corroded and we had to fill them with welding to make them structurally safe. Other than that, no modifications were made.

"Workers under my supervision also managed to hoist the seven tonne bell to examine the pins which were found to be in relatively good condition. Proper conservation processes were used by the workers and the original fittings done in 1748 have all been retained.

"There was some concern about the wooden parts of the fittings but these were completely cleaned to eradicate traces of woodworm and after a laborious process, the wooden beams are now in excellent condition," Mr Cauchi said.

What are the second and third phases of the restoration?

"The second phase will involve work on the clappers and suspension of the two facade bells. We will examine all the clappers and the leather parts to make sure they are stable. The second phase also includes examination of the shackles.

"The bells in the South belfry will be inspected and they will be drilled to remove corrosion in wrought iron loop suspensions that have corroded, due to an oxidation and reduction process - the direct effect of electrolysis. They will be bypassed and insulated so that this reaction (electrolysis) will not occur again," Mr Cauchi said.

The bells, dating from 1702 and 1703, will pass through this process as have those at the Mdina Cathedral and other bells in the cathedral which date from an earlier period.

The third phase of the project will concentrate on the three clock bells dating back to 1619 – Wignacourt's time. They are not badly damaged as they have a hammer mechanism and there is only wear and tear in the bushes and springs of the hammers, Mr Cauchi told me.

Apart from this, the third phase will also include repairing the hour bell and a similar painstaking restoration process will take place.

"This will conclude the whole restoration process and it will be one of the greatest and most challenging projects ever carried out on these historic bells and the local campanological scene," Mr Cauchi concluded.