Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Handbell-Side-and-Bottom-Views.jpg
Handbells are bells manufactured to a size that fits the human hand to be played with ease. They are rung rapidly to create a "tremelo" kind of sound -- that is, the same note rapidly repeating.
Each handbell has a specific pitch, with several individual handbells to complete some desired pitch set ("octave").
Robert and William Cor (England) developed the first tuned handbells some time between 1696 and 1724.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Handbell-Side-and-Bottom-Views.jpg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQFE8e8dICM