the organ is occasional used for recitals and recordings. Bells The bells of the cathedral were acquired by Bishop Goold, Melbourne's Roman Catholic leader at the time, when he visited Europe in 1851–1852. He bought a peal of eight bells for £500 (with some records showing that it cost £700). They arrived in Australia in 1853. The peal of eight bells is in F natural, with the tenor weighing and the treble . The peal set weights around . The bells were all cast by John Murphy of Dublin in 1852. The bells were hung in a low frame at ground level in the western aisle in 1868. The consecration service was attended by around 5,000 people. The eight bell bears the coat of arms of Bishop Goold. The bells were eventually hung at the south-eastern tower. The ringers of St Patrick's began the custom of ringing in the New Year in 1871. And by the 1880s, St Patrick's Cathedral became the leading tower for Australian change ringing. The bells were rung for the requiem mass of Pope Pius X in 1914. By 1959 the belfry fell into disrepair and the bells became unringable. The bells remained silent until in 1988, when the peal was sent to Eayre and Smith Bell foundry in England as the major Victorian project among Bicententennial bell restorations. Upon their return, a ninth bell, an Angelus bell, was added. An electronic chiming mechanism was also installed at this time for all the bells. The original manual method was retained by the electronic mechanism, in order to replicate how the bells would have sounded if they were rung by hand. The entire eight headstocks had to be replaced just ten years after this installation. The ringers are affiliated with The Australian and New Zealand Association of Bellringers. The bells are unusual in that they were cast untuned, they ring anti-clockwise instead of clockwise, and they are thought to be the only ring of eight bells cast by Murphy which are still in operation today. Photo gallery See also List of cathedrals in Australia Notes References External links St Patrick's Cathedral website Roman Catholic churches completed in 1939 Patrick's Patrick's Patrick's Patrick's Patrick's Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne William Wardell church buildings Gothic Revival church buildings in Australia Cathedrals in Melbourne Landmarks in Melbourne Green bans 1939 establishments in Australia 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Australia