Following is a list of the heaviest bells known to have been cast, and the period of time during which they held that title.
The title of heaviest functioning bell in the world has been held chronologically by:
| Year | Bell | Weight | Fate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| tonnes | lb | |||
| 732 | Tōdai-ji | 44 | 96,000 | Surpassed |
| 1484 | Great Bell of Dhammazedi | 294 | 648,000 | Stolen and lost |
| 1608 | Tōdai-ji | 44 | 96,000 | Surpassed |
| 1633 | Chion-in Temple | 67 | 148,000 | Surpassed |
| 1810 | Mingun Bell | 88 | 195,000 | Fell during earthquake (raised again in 1896) |
| 1839 | Chion-in Temple | 67 | 148,000 | Surpassed |
| 1896 | Mingun Bell | 88 | 195,000 | Surpassed |
| 1902 | Shitennō-ji Temple Bell | 114 | 251,000 | Recycled for war |
| 1942 | Mingun Bell | 88 | 195,000 | Surpassed |
| 2000 | Bell of Good Luck | 116 | 256,000 | Incumbent |
At approximately 300 tons, the Great Bell of Dhammazedi is the largest bell to have existed in recorded history.[1] Cast in 1484 by King DhammazediofMon, this bell was located at the Shwedagon PagodainRangoon, Burma (now Yangon, Myanmar). The bell was said to be twelve cubits (6.276 m) high and eight cubits (4.184 m) wide.[2]
The Great Bell of Dhammazedi remained at the Shwedagon Pagoda as the heaviest functioning bell in the world until 1608. That year, Portuguese warlord and mercenary Philip de Brito removed it and attempted to carry it by a specially constructed raft down the Yangon River to his stronghold of Thanlyin (later known as Syriam). However, the ship carrying the bell sank at the confluence of the Yangon and Bago rivers. The Dhammazedi Bell remains buried to this day at that location, possibly well-preserved, beneath some 8 metres (26 ft) of sediment. Numerous attempts have been made to locate and recover the bell, thus far without success.[3][4]
So while the Great Bell of Dhammazedi might indeed be the heaviest bell in the world, it must be disqualified from consideration as such, until it has been recovered and restored to a functional status.
Cast in 1633, the 74-ton Chion-in Temple Bell, located in Kyoto, Japan, held the title of heaviest functioning bell in the world until 1810.[5]
From March 1839 until March 1896, the Mingun Bell was not functional due to the fact that it was not hanging freely from its shackles. During this period, the Chion-in Temple Bell regained its former title.[5]
Cast in 1808, the 90-ton Mingun BellinMingun, Sagaing Division, Burma became the heaviest functioning bell in the world from its suspension in 1810 until 23 March 1839. On that date, it was knocked off its supports by a large earthquake.[6]
The Mingun Bell was resuspended in March 1896 by a team of men from the Irrawaddy Flotilla Company.[7] The Mingun Bell was again the world's heaviest functioning bell from its resuspension in 1896 until 1902.
The Mingun Bell regained its status as the heaviest functioning bell in the world in 1942 and held that title until 2000.
In 1902, the newly-cast 114-ton Shitennō-ji Temple Bell was hung in Osaka, Japan.[8] The Shitennō-ji Temple Bell reigned as the heaviest functioning bell in the world from that year until 1942, when it was melted down for its metal to assist with the then-ongoing World War II effort.[8]
Cast on New Year's Eve 2000, the Bell of Good Luck is located in the Foquan Temple in Pingdingshan, Henan, China.[9][10] The bell weighs 116 tonnes (256,000 lb) and it is 810.8 cm (319.2 in) in height and 511.8 cm (201.5 in) in diameter.[9][10] The Bell of Good Luck has therefore claimed the title of heaviest functioning bell in the world since its construction in 2000, up to the present date.
The 216-ton Russian Tsar Bell (also known as the Tsar Kolokol III) on display on the grounds of the Moscow Kremlin is the heaviest bell known to exist in the world today.[11] However, a very large piece broke off from the Tsar Bell during a fire which engulfed the tower the bell was intended to be hung in, so this irreparably damaged bell has never been suspended or rung. The Tsar Bell cannot be considered as the heaviest functioning bell in the world due to its inability to serve as a percussion instrument. Rather, it may be considered to be the largest bell, or at least the largest bell-shaped sculpture in the world.
Bells weighing 25 tonnes or more:
| Name of bell (or edifice containing bell) | Location | Weight | Year cast | Manufacturer or foundry | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tsar Bell | Moscow Kremlin, Moscow, Russia | 201,924 kg (445,166 lb) | 1735 | Ivan Feodorovich Motorin | broken[12] |
| Bell of Good Luck | Foquan Temple, Fodushan Scenic Area, Pingdingshan, Henan, China | 116,000 kg (256,000 lb) | 2000 | Tianrui Group | currently the heaviest functioning bell in the world[9][10][13] |
| Mingun Bell | Mingun, Myanmar | 90,718 kg (199,999 lb) | 1808 | King Bodawpaya | Weighs 55,555 viss, or exactly 199,999 pounds.[13] |
| Tsarsky Kolokol | Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius, Sergiyev Posad, Moscow Oblast, Russia | 71,800 kg (158,400 lb) | 2004 | Zavod imeni Likhacheva, Moscow, Russia | [12] |
| Chion-in Temple Bell | Kyoto, Japan | 67,000 kg (148,000 lb) | 1633 | unknown | [5] |
| Great Uspensky Bell (also known as Great Assumption Bell) | Moscow Kremlin, Moscow, Russia | 65,522 kg (144,452 lb) | 1817 | Yakov Zavyalov and Rusinov | [12] |
| Tōdai-ji Temple Bell | Nara, Japan | 44,000 kg (96,000 lb) | 732 | unknown | [13] |
| Yongle Bell | Da Zhong Si (Great Bell Temple), Beijing, China | 42,000 kg (93,000 lb) | ca. 1420 | unknown | [13] |
| Name unknown | Moscow, Russia | 40,000 kg (88,000 lb) | 1600 | Andrey Chokhov | [12] |
| Tharrawaddy Min Bell | Shwedagon Pagoda, Yangon, Myanmar | 38,000 kg (84,000 lb) | 1842 | Maha Sithu and Maha Min Kyaw Thinkhaya[14] | [13] |
| Gotenba Bell | Toki no Sumika Park, Gotemba, Shizuoka, Japan | 36,170 kg (79,750 lb) | 2006 | Royal Eijsbouts bell foundry | [13][15] |
| Đại hồng chung | Bai Dinh Pagoda, Gia Vien, Ninh Binh, Vietnam | 35,986 kg (79,336 lb) | 2007 | Nguyễn Văn Sở, Huế, Vietnam | [16] |
| Blagovestnik (also known as Firstborn) | Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius, Sergiyev Posad, Moscow Oblast, Russia | 35,490 kg (78,250 lb) | 2002 | Zavod imeni Likhacheva, Moscow, Russia | [12] |
| Savvino-Storozhevsky Monastery | Zvenigorod, Moscow Oblast, Russia | 35,000 kg (77,000 lb) | 2003 | Vera LLC, Shilova, Voronezh, Russia | [12][17] |
| Yuriev Monastery | Veliky Novgorod, Novgorod Oblast, Russia | 34,399 kg (75,837 lb) | unknown | [12] | |
| World Peace Bell | Newport, Kentucky, U.S. | 33,285 kg (73,381 lb) | 1998 | Fonderie Paccard | [18] |
| Kazansky Monastery | Tambov, Tambov Oblast, Russia | 32,761 kg (72,226 lb) | unknown | [12] | |
| Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery | Kirillov and Belozersk, Vologda Oblast, Russia | 32,761 kg (72,226 lb) | unknown | [12] | |
| Saint Isaac's Cathedral | Saint Petersburg, Russia | 30,477 kg (67,191 lb) | mid-19th century | unknown | [12] |
| Torzhestvennyj Bell | Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, Moscow, Russia | 27,102 kg (59,749 lb) | 1878 | unknown | [12] |
| Evangelist (bell) | Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius, Sergiyev Posad, Moscow Oblast, Russia | 26,900 kg (59,400 lb) | 2002 | Zavod imeni Likhacheva, Moscow, Russia | [12] |
| Saint Sophia Cathedral | Veliky Novgorod, Novgorod Oblast, Russia | 26,438 kg (58,286 lb) | 1659 | unknown | [12] |
| Big Bell (People's Salvation Cathedral) | People's Salvation Cathedral, Bucharest, Romania | 25,190 kg (55,534 lb) | 2016 | Grassmayr | The heaviest swinging bell in the world.[19] |
| St. Petersglocke | Cologne Cathedral, Cologne, Germany | 23,900 kg (52,800 lb) | 1923 | Heinrich Ulrich | The heaviest bell in the world which hangs on a straight bar.[20] |
| Sysoi | Assumption Cathedral in Rostov, Rostov-Velikij, Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia | 24,000 kg (52,000 lb) | 1689 | Flor Terentyev | [12][21] |
| Singu Min Bell | Shwedagon Pagoda, Yangon, Myanmar | 23,000 kg (50,600 lb) | 1779 | Singu Min | [13][22] |
Bells weighing 25 tonnes or more, no longer in existence (lost or destroyed):
| Name of bell (or edifice containing bell) | Location | Weight | Year cast | Manufacturer or foundry | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Great Bell of Dhammazedi | Shwedagon Pagoda, Yangon, Myanmar | 294,000 kg (648,000 lb) | 1484 | King Dhammazedi | submerged in the Bago River in 1608; may be recoverable[13] |
| Shitennō-ji Temple Bell | Osaka, Japan | 114,000 kg (251,000 lb) | 1902 | unknown | destroyed 1942[13] |
| Tsarsky Kolokol Bell (aka "Trotzkoi Bell") | Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius, Sergiyev Posad, Moscow Oblast, Russia | 144,452 lb (65,522 kg) | 1748 | unknown | destroyed 1930[12] |
| Savvino-Storozhevsky Monastery | Zvenigorod, Moscow Oblast, Russia | 34,821 kg (76,767 lb) | 1667 | unknown | destroyed 1941[12] |
| Godunov Bell (also known as Old Assumption Bell, or Resurrection Bell) | Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius, Sergiyev Posad, Moscow Oblast, Russia | 30,304 kg (66,809 lb) | ca. 1600 | Andrey Chokhov | destroyed 1701[12] |
| Kaiserglocke | Cologne Cathedral, Cologne, Germany | 27,740 kg (61,160 lb) | 1874 | Andreas Hamm | destroyed 1918[20] |
