Antique French metal cow or goats bell with oval wooden collar top

An antique French bell with beautifully made wooden collar top to attach to an animals harness, to help the herders find the flock.
These items are usually found in the mountainous areas of France on the borders of Germany and Switzerland.
Often bells like this are sold as souvenirs, with a leather tag or collar featuring the name of the town or region, but this one is a genuine animal bell.
The oval wooden collar would not have been for the animals neck, it would have facilitated hanging the bell free around the animals chest, attached to a leather or woven twine harness or collar so that the sound rang true and clear.
This item was handmade and has been carefully crafted from a bentwood stave shaped into an oval using steam, with wooden fixtures bolting and pinning it together. The bell was made by hammering out a sheet of metal and shaping it to form the vessel for the clapper, and a bar slot across the top to hang from the wooden collar. Remarkable craftsmanship and possibly having centuries of age.
The clapper inside the metal bell is formed from a piece of claw or horn, very unusual.
A lovely antique item from France.
The bentwood collar has a small piece missing at one side, and the bell has a rusty patina.

DELIVERY DETAILS. PLEASE READ
We are able to post out parcels from Metropolitan France and shipping fees are shown. Please allow plenty of transit time, as European post is notoriously slow!

*Please note that most deliveries within France and some other European Union countries are usually made to a Pont Relais collection point, there are usually a number of these located in shops and supermarkets in each town, and you will be given the opportunity to specify which one you prefer if this service is available for your location. Otherwise I will select the shop with the longest opening hours within your area. If you would prefer La Poste domestic delivery PLEASE ASK for a quote.
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Outside of Europe we use La Poste International parcel service.
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Our items are carefully selected antique and vintage pieces from France and they show the character and charm of years of use. We do not sell new or reproduction items so you can expect to find signs of the age and life that the piece has led. We believe this history adds to the story of an item. Obvious damage and faults will always be mentioned in our descriptions but minor age-related condition issues are not considered a detriment.