Tsar Bell: how the most famous monument of foundry art was created
Tsar Bell: how the most famous monument of foundry art was created

Video: Tsar Bell: how the most famous monument of foundry art was created

Video: Tsar Bell: how the most famous monument of foundry art was created
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The Tsar Bell is a monument of foundry art
The Tsar Bell is a monument of foundry art

One of the many sights of Moscow is The Tsar Bell … This monument of foundry art is located on Ivanovskaya Square and weighs over 200 tons. How such a whopper was created - further in the review.

The Tsar Bell is a product weighing 202 tons
The Tsar Bell is a product weighing 202 tons

The Tsar Bell was cast in 1735. It was based on the remains of another bell weighing 128 tons, which broke down during a fire.

Initially, the casting of the Tsar Bell was offered to the Frenchman Germain, who served as a royal goldsmith, but he was afraid of the scale of the work and refused. Then the Russian foundry masters Motorina (father and son) offered their services. The preparatory work and the casting itself took 1, 5 years. During this time, Father Motorin died. A pit 10 meters deep was dug for the future product on Ivanovskaya Square. The form was placed there. Workers built four foundry furnaces nearby.

The breakaway part of the bell weighs 11.5 tons
The breakaway part of the bell weighs 11.5 tons

There are decorative ornaments on the Tsar Bell. To cast his name on the product, Motorin had to ask the permission of the Empress Anna Ioannovna. In Moscow at that time there was another strong fire that destroyed a quarter of the city. The wooden beams that held their shape burned out. To prevent the bell from melting again, they began to fill it with water. Unfortunately, due to the temperature drop, a piece weighing 11.5 tons broke off from it. Modern researchers argue that the chip occurred from a violation of the manufacturing technology, and the fire is just a convenient explanation.

Tsar Bell on Ivanovskaya Square. 19th century postcard
Tsar Bell on Ivanovskaya Square. 19th century postcard

The bell itself weighed 202 tons, and repeated attempts to get it out of shape were unsuccessful. They got the Tsar Bell only after 100 years. This was done by Auguste Montferrand (architect of St. Isaac's Cathedral) on August 17, 1836. By the way, the Tsar Bell never rang, because it did not even cast a tongue for him. The one inside the pedestal is taken from an unknown bell.

The rise of the Tsar Bell from the pit
The rise of the Tsar Bell from the pit
Retro photo of the Tsar Bell. Photo: derzski.ru
Retro photo of the Tsar Bell. Photo: derzski.ru

Thousands of bells can be read throughout Russia. Here the most interesting facts of their creation.

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