Bell Casting
Event
Watching a bell casting is fascinating. When you see the molten metal it is like entering a magical world. Every year, between 300 and 500 bells are casted at the PACCARD Bell Foundry and sent all over the world. When visiting the PACCARD Museum you are invited to go behind the scene of the company and literally watch the birth of a bell.
A spectacular moment
A testimony for the future generations
A musical tribute
A bell casting is the very moment when, like molten lava, metal becomes alive and a bell is created. A bell is a musical instrument as such.
Metal used for that is a specific bronze named brass or bell bronze. It is made of 78 % copper and 22% tin. It is melted and a control is done when reaching the 5th heating hour.
Next step is pouring the molten bronze in the bell mold once temperature reaches between 1030 and 1230 Celcius degrees. Gas fire gets out through blowholes as a result of the air combustion in the mold.
One public bell casting takes place every Thursday during the Discovery Tour. You are kindly requested to book in advance as number of (standing) places is limited.
The PACCARD Bell Foundry is well known all over the world for its perfect mastering of bell profiles and its making of prestigious bells; (the Savoyarde / Sacred Heart Basilica in Paris – the Joan of Arch / Our lady Cathedral in Rouen – the World Peace Bell / a 33 tons bells ordered by an American Billionaire for the 3Rd millennium – the Liberty bell, to name but a few…)
Therefore , orders of exceptional bells weighing several tons, named “Bourdons”, are regularly issued.
If you want to be informed about those exceptional bell casting, and, why not, be able to come and watch them, you can fill in the “friends of Paccard Museum” form and join our network. Kindly bear in mind that you have to book quite in advance for an exceptional bell casting as the number of seats is limited.
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