Meet the Foundries Casting the Emancipation Bells

To cast the Emancipation Bells, the National Bell Festival invited bell foundries across the globe to submit proposals and bids. Two foundries of impeccable heritage and craftsmanship were eventually selected, after an independent committee comprising carillonists, campanologists, and community stakeholders compared and evaluated all submissions. The Emancipation Bells carillon will be cast by Royal Eijsbouts, with an additional ring of peal bells cast by John Taylor & Co.

Royal Eijsbouts

Founded in 1872 in Asten, Netherlands, Royal Eijsbouts is a world leader in the casting of tower bells and time pieces. For 150 years, the company has supplied remarkable bells to some of the most recognizable towers in the world, including the Marie bell at Notre-Dame de Paris and the world’s largest swinging bell at the foot of Mt. Fuji, Japan. Significant carillon installations include the largest in Europe, the carillon in Berlin-Tiergarten, and the carillon at St. Rombouts in Mechelen, Belgium. Royal Eijsbouts will be casting all 52 carillon bells in the Emancipation Bells.

Image: Bell makers at Royal Eijsbouts prepare to pour molten bronze into bell casting molds. Courtesy: Land van de Peel.

John Taylor & Co.

John Taylor & Co., the largest bell foundry in the world, continues a line of bell making which has been unbroken since the middle of the 14th century. Located in Loughborough, United Kingdom, the foundry merges centuries of expertise with next-generation technologies to supply bells, fittings, and frameworks across the globe. From London’s St. Paul’s Cathedral to York Minster, and from Australia to the Americas, Taylor bells have contributed to the soundscape of Britain and beyond for centuries. John Taylor & Co. will be casting the ring of 12 peal bells in the Emancipation Bells.

Image: Bell makers at John Taylor & Co. pour molten bronze into bell casting molds. Courtesy: Visit Leicester.