Hoisting up the two revived bells “The Firstling” and “The Good News Carrier” at the Cathedral Square of the Trinity St. Sergius monastery in Sergiev Posad, 2002.
Photo: Mikhail Ilyin
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Russia’s Highest Bell Tower Crowned with a Bell
April 16, The biggest ever church bell has been hoisted up to Russia’s highest belfry of the Trinity St. Sergius monastery in Sergiev Posad. The bell is second only to the Kremlin Csar-Bell in its size and weight, though the latter has never been used to design purpose.
In order to lift the new 72 tons “Csar-Bell” the constructors used a special 88 meter high lifting crane with the carrying capacity of over 200 tons.
Before lifting, the huge bell was blessed by Patriarch Alexy II, who is also the Archimandrite of the Trinity St. Sergius monastery. The RF Culture Minister Aleksander Sokolov was also present at the ceremony.
The bell was modeled after a 1748 bell destroyed during Stalin's campaign against religion in the 1930s.
It is the third bell to be replaced at the monastery, where some 40 bells were wrecked in Stalin's state atheism campaign. The first two, “The Firstling” and “The Good News Carrier” can be seen at the photo.
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