The bells, Esmeralda, the bells!
Quasimodo will finally have new bells to ring. The Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris is getting a fresh new set of bells for its 850 birthday (read about them in detail here). They have been on display inside the cathedral recently and I paid them a visit. As you can see in the slide show below, each are quite unique and they even have their own name.
The bells of Notre Dame have quite a history. Bells have been ringing from the cathedral since the end of the 1100s. The smaller ones were taken during the French Revolution and melted down. They were replaced in the mid 1800s but with inferior quality metal, and for this reason they deserve replacing. Even I have noticed their rather weak and anemic sound quality.
Just a bit more bell trivia. The largest bell, named Emmanuel is only rung on special occasions. I plan to be there at Easter to hear it. The bells have to be supported by a wooden structure which can absorb the vibrations. Stone would crack.
Yes, you are absolutely right the bells were melted down during the French Revolution when they change the cathedral into the temple of Wisdom, Temple de la Sagesse. Isn’t the largest one called Gabriel?
I love the pictures you put with it. We just need to find another Quasimodo. No, we need to find someone happier about ringing the bells at Notre Dame.
Maria, I didn’t know that it was renamed Temple de Sagesse. The largest bell is named Emmanuel….and I got to hear it the other day when they rang the new bells for the first time. It would be cool to have another Quasimodo…..did you know that is where the word “clochard” comes from? They got poor people to ring the bells and paid them something. Thanks for the comment.