For Whom the Old Tom Bell Tolls

There are several beloved icons in Oxford.   One is the bell tower at Christchurch College, called the Tom Tower.  It is named for its bell, Great Tom, which weighs over 6 tons and is the loudest bell in Oxford.  Great Tom was hung in the Tom Tower in 1660, when the quad of Christchurch College was being built.  Every night since 1663, Old Tom has tolled 101 times at 9:05pm, one toll for each of the 100 original scholars of the college, plus one added in 1663. It originally signified curfew and was the signal for all the Oxford colleges to lock their gates.

Today, it still rings 101 times each night at 9:05pm -- a tradition that is 450 years old.