The brothers' skill was unequaled in their time; after their death, their guarded trade secrets were lost, and not until the 19th century were bells of comparable tuning quality cast[citation needed].

Van Eyck, appointed city carillonneur of Utrecht in 1642, had drawn the attention of leading scientists of his day, such as Christiaan Huygens (his relative) and René Descartes[citation needed], with his ability to isolate five partials of a bell by whistling to create sympathetic resonance.

However, following conflicts with the city of Ghent over the quality of his work, Pieter in 1664 rejoined his brother in Amsterdam where, together, they cast some of their finest carillons, including that of the Dom Tower of Utrecht and the Town Hall (now the Royal Palace on Dam square).

They found a perfectly preserved bell which, according to the text engraved on it, had been cast at the Amsterdam foundry of François Hemony in 1658.

In the Netherlands, several places have a street named after the Hemonies: Amsterdam, Middelstum, Venray, Assen, Zutphen and Arnhem.