Gardaí in Co Kerry uncovered parts of the bell, which had been broken up and placed in plastic bags, in undergrowth in a lane in Castleisland on Monday evening at the opposite end of the town to the theatre.
The bell, weighing 350lb and standing 2½ft high, had been removed from its shelf by thieves three weeks ago.
It was cast near Cheltenham in 1776 and bears the date.
After a fire at the former church, it had been placed on the 12ft shelf inside the theatre.
Jerome Stack, manager of the Ivy Leaf, yesterday said it had been hoped the bell would have been kept intact.
About half of it, mainly the rim section, had been recovered by gardaí.
“There’s still a chance of getting the rest of it back and we can get it repaired,” Mr Stack said.
The bell was made by Thomas Rudhall of a well-known bell-making family in Gloucester.
Originally one of 5,000, it is today one of only 16 in existence, four in Ireland.
Gardaí and Mr Stack have asked scrap dealers and junkyard owners to report it if they are approached.