an independent reference on the history of bells and bell-ringing

Danilovbells

An independent, secular reference on the history of bells. This is not the website of the Danilov Monastery, the Russian Orthodox Church or Harvard University; we do not provide religious guidance.

Analysis

Analysis

This section is about how to work with information about bells rather than about the information itself. How to determine when a bell was cast, why stories about bells so often gather legends, why weights and numbers differ between sources, and how to read memoirs without treating every detail as a document. It is also home to the catalogue of standalone articles written for English-speaking readers.

An honest 'the exact weight is unknown' is more useful than a handsome figure taken from a retelling of a retelling.

— Editor's note

How this section works: it describes general methods for working with sources that apply to any part of this reference. We draw no conclusions without support from sources and offer no religious or political judgments.

Methods

How do you date a bell?

Start with the inscription: many bells carry the year and the founder's name cast into them. If there is no inscription or it is incomplete, inventories, foundry records, photographs and features of shape and decoration typical of a particular era can help.

How do you tell a legend from a document?

A document is created at the time and usually shows who compiled it, when and why. A legend is passed on by word of mouth and changes over time. If a piece of information appears only in retellings and in no document, it is best treated as legend.

Why do the figures differ?

Bell weights were recorded in different units, rounded off and sometimes exaggerated in newspapers and stories. That is why this reference gives specific figures only when they are reliably confirmed and otherwise speaks in general terms.

How should you read memoirs?

Consider when and by whom they were written, and separate what the author saw first-hand from what they knew by hearsay. Check dates and names from memoirs against documents.

Catalogue of articles for English-speaking readers

This section will feature standalone articles written for English-speaking readers. They are shaped by the questions these readers ask and are not translations of material from other language versions of the site.

Topics the editors are planning

  • Change ringing: how the English tradition of ringing bells in sequence works
  • Big Ben and the bells of Westminster: a short history
  • The Liberty Bell: what is known about its casting and its crack
  • Carillons in North America: how the instrument spread

Editorial rules

  • Articles in this catalogue are written separately for each language version and are not translations.
  • Some articles link to third-party websites, including gaming services; we do not control their content, prices or terms.
  • We do not publish unverifiable assessments, quotations or information about living people.
  • Texts and sources

    The kinds of sources on bell history and how to work with them: inscriptions, archives, newspapers, memoirs.

  • Historical context

    Five eras in the history of bells in Russia, from the Middle Ages to the return of the bells in the early 21st century.

  • The bells' journey: Moscow to Cambridge and back (in Russian)

    The journey of the Danilov Monastery bells: the 1930 sale, Cambridge and the return in 2008.

Sources

  • Great Russian Encyclopedia
  • Encyclopedic sources on the history of bells

This reference relies on encyclopedic works and on publications of Harvard University. The weights, numbers and dates of individual bells can differ from one source to another, so we give only verified information and say clearly where exact data are lacking.