Olympic Bell (London 2012)

The Olympic Bell, which Bradley Wiggins rung to signal the opening of the London 2012 Olympics, now hangs rather forlornly outside the London Stadium.

It is a monster of a bell that will, in all likelihood, hang hear for the rest of its days, never to be rung again. This seems to be a waste of a bell, to me, as a bell is designed and tuned to be rung.

Having never seen it up close I was shocked by the sheer size of it.

"Be not afeard; the isle is full of noises" - The Tempest

Brief History

The Whitechapel Bell Foundry was commissioned to make the bell for the London 2012 Olympic Games, in September 2011. They finalised the design, kettering and tuning but found that no longer had the capability to cast such a massive bell. Controversially, they subcontracted the casting to Royal Eijsbouts, in the Netherlands. The Loughborough based Taylor's Bell Foundry, which had also tendered to the cast the bell, took exception at the bell being cast by a non-British company. 

The framework, from which to hang the bell, and the hammer mechanism, which alone weighed a half-ton, were made by various companies. In total there were twenty different companies, from three countries, that brought the bell to completion.

Following the Olympic Games the Olympic Park reopened in May 2013, with the bell being installed at its present site in May 2016.

It is no longer rung as it would disturb those that now live in and around the Olympic Park.

Part of the Olympic Legacy Pledge was to return the bell to the Whitechapel Bell Foundry after 200 years. However, the foundry closed in 2017, bringing an end to nearly 450 years of bell-making, 250 years of which were in Whitechapel.

The Whitechapel Bell Foundry is known for recasting Big Ben, in the Elizabeth Tower of the Palace of Westminster, and for casting the Liberty Bell, which is in Philadelphia.

Facts about the bell.

1. Height: 2 metres (6 ft 7 in)
2. Diameter: 3.34 metres (10 ft 11 in)
3. Weight: 22 long tons 18 cwt 3 qr 13 lb (51,393 lb or 23.311 t)
4. Material: Bronze Bell Metal: 78% copper, 22% tin
5. Tuning: B
6. It was first rung at midnight June 1, 2012
7. It is the largest harmonically tuned bell in the world
8. It is the second heaviest bell in Europe
9. It is, possibly, the largest ornamental bell in the world