A death knell is the ringing of a bell to announce a death. This is also called tolling the bell.
The ancient custom of ringing a church bell at the actual time of death (the Passing-Bell, or rather the Death Knell) fell into disuse in England by the end of the 18th century. More customary at the end of the 19th century was to ring the Death Knell as soon as notice reached the clerk of the church or sexton, unless the sun had set, in which case it was rung at an early hour the following morning.
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