Great Oriental Bells of Asia and the Pacific Rim

Here are listed 18 existing and former Oriental-profile great bells of Asia and the Pacific Rim, in descending order by weight.  The format of each entry is explained in a key at the bottom of this page.

A companion page lists Western-profile great bells in the same region.

Bells in italics no longer exist.

• "Bell of Dhammazedi", pitch?, ~180,000 vis, maker unknown, February 1484
• formerly in Shwe Dagon Pagoda, Rangoon;
  now lost at the bottom of the river.
• Cast by order of King Dhammazedi, 9th of the Mon kings of Burma.
  Stolen from the pagoda in 1608; sank in the river when the raft which was carrying it broke apart; may be recoverable.
  1 vis = 1.65 kg (approximately), giving a total weight of 297 metric tonnes.
• Links:
  > Illustrated page about the world's three largest bells (this is #1); note that one of the weights given there (600 US tons) is incorrect.
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the unidentified bellfoundries.

2.   Osaka, Japan - ~251,000 or 310,000 lbs

• un-named, pitch not recorded, ~114000 kg, maker unknown, 1902 or 1903
• Shi-tenno-ji Temple
  Osaka, Japan
• Oriental profile; melted down in 1942 for its metal.
• Links:
  > Photo from russianbells.com
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the unidentified bellfoundries.

3.   Pingdingshan City, China - 254,000 lbs

• "Lucky Bell", pitch unknown, 127 US tons, Tianrui Group, 2000
• Pingdingshan City, Hunan Province, China
• Oriental profile; height 318 inches, diameter 201 inches;
  now the heaviest working bell in the world.
• Links:
  > Description and photo from russianbells.com
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the miscellaneous bellfoundries.

• "name"?, pitch?, 55555 peik-thar, maker?, 1790
• Mingum sull'Irravaddy / Mingoon / Mingun (near Mandalay), Burma
• Western profile but without soundbow, and therefore listed both here and on the companion page.
  About 366 cm high and 495 cm diameter.
  1 peik-thar (approximately 1 vis) = 1.63 kg, giving an equivalent weight of 90.554 metric tonnes.
  Was the largest soundable bell in the world.
• Links:
  > Illustrated page about the world's three largest bells (this was #2), from russianbells.com
  > Ray's Bell Page #1 has a photo of this bell.
  > Photo blog article (in French) with several photos of this bell.
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the unidentified bellfoundries.

5.   Kyongju, South Korea - ~159,000 lbs

• "Emilee" (or "Emille"), D#, ~72000 kg, maker unknown, 771
• National Museum
  Kyongju, South Korea
• Oriental profile, about 280 cm high and 227 cm in diameter;
  was formerly in the temple of Pondok in this city.
  Was once ranked as the third-heaviest soundable bell in the world.
• Links:
  > A page on Asian Bells includes a photo of this bell.
  > Photo from russianbells.com
  > John Ketteringham's recording of this bell
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the unidentified bellfoundries.

6.   Kyoto, Japan - ~139,000 lbs

• "name"?, pitch?, ~63000 kg, maker?, 1614
• Hoko-ji Monastery
  Kyoto, Japan
• Oriental profile
  One of the two largest bells cast in Japan before the 20th c.
  Also reported as nearly 30 tons.
• Links:
  >
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the unidentified bellfoundries.

7.   Kyoto, Japan - ~139,000 lbs

• "name"?, pitch?, ~63000 kg, maker?, 1636
• Chion-In Temple
  Kyoto, Japan
• Oriental profile
  One of the two largest bells cast in Japan before the 20th c.;
  at 274 cm diameter, it has been claimed to be the largest Buddhist temple bell in Japan.
  Also reported as nearly 30 tons.
• Links:
  > Photo from russianbells.com
  > Ray's Bell Page #1 has a photo and sound clip of this bell.
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the unidentified bellfoundries.

8.   Beijing, China - ~123,000 lbs

• "name"?, pitch?, 56000 kg, Yao Kuang-Hsiao (or Ya Kuang-Hsia), 1404
• Temple of the Great Bell
  Beijing (Peking), China
• Oriental profile with slight flare in 8-scalloped rim;
  height about 500 cm (plus nearly 200 cm for its suspension loop), diameter about 450 cm;
  the only survivor of 5 to 9 great bells made in 1402-1423 by the same founder.
• Links:
  >
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the miscellaneous bellfoundries.

9.   Nara, Japan - ~96000 lbs

• "name"?, pitch?, 96000 lbs, maker?, 732
• To-dai-ji (temple)
• Possibly recast in 1239
• Links:
  > Photo from www.russianbells.com
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the unidentified bellfoundries.

10.   Beijing, China - ~93,000 lbs

• "Yong Le"?, pitch?, 93,000 lb, maker?, c.1420
• Da Zhong Si (Great Bell Temple)
  Beijing (Peking), China
• Oriental profile presumed
• Links:
  > Photo from www.russianbells.com
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the unidentified bellfoundries.

11.   Rangoon, Burma - ~84,000 lbs

• "name"?, pitch?, 42 tons, maker?, 1840
• (unknown)
  Rangoon, Burma
• [no remarks yet]
• Links:
  >
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the unidentified bellfoundries.

12.   Kyushu, Japan - ~82000 lbs

• "Flying Dragon", A, 37500 kg, maker? (Kyoto), 1977
• Rengein Tanjyoji Temple
  Kyushu
  Japan
• Diameter 288cm, height 455cm
  Claimed as the biggest temple bell in the world; but clearly is not the heaviest.
• Links:
  > English-language page about the bell; follow the "try to ring" link at the bottom of the page to see more description and a sound option.
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the unidentified bellfoundries.

13.   Ninh Binh, Viet Nam - over 40,000 lbs

• "name"?, pitch?, 36 tonnes, maker? (in Hue), 2009
• Bai Dinh Spiritual Centre
  Gia Sinh Commune
  Gia Vien district Ninh Binh, Viet Nam
• Links:
  > News article (Ap.2009) about the pagoda at Bai Dinh Spiritual Centre mentions this bell, describing it as the heaviest in Viet Nam, cast in Hue (country's centre of bronze casting), of bronze and gold.
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the unidentified bellfoundries.

14.   Nanking, China - over 40,000 lbs

• "name"?, pitch?, over 20 tons, maker?, 712
• Unknown
  Nanking, China
• Oriental profile, scalloped rim, diameter 2 meters;
  cast by order of the emperor HsŸan Tsang;
  possibly of Korean workmanship.
  (Until "recently", a similar bell was in Canton, China.)
• Links:
  >
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the unidentified bellfoundries.

15.   Nanking, China - over 40,000 lbs

• "name"?, pitch?, over 20 tons, maker?, 1389
• Unknown
  Nanking, China
• Oriental profile presumed; height 360 cm, diameter 240 cm;
  cast by order of the first Ming Dynasty emperor.
  (Three other bells, made about the same time and presumably similar, have disappeared.)
• Links:
  >
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the unidentified bellfoundries.

16.   Rangoon, Burma - ~32,000 lbs

• "Maha Ganda" (Sweet Voice), pitch?, est.16 tons, maker?, 1791
• (unknown)
  Rangoon, Burma
• Made for Shwe Dagon
• Links:
  >
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the unidentified bellfoundries.

17.   Pyong-Yang, Korea - ~20,000 lbs

• "name"?, pitch?, about 10 tons, maker?, 1727
• city center
  Pyong-Yang, Korea
• [No remarks yet]
• Links:
  >
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the unidentified bellfoundries.

18.   Seoul, Korea - EquivalentWeight lbs

• "name"?, pitch?, reported weight?, maker?, 1468
• Chong-ro (ancient main central intersection)
  Seoul, Korea
• Oriental profile presumed; height 280 cm, diameter 228 cm
• Links:
  >
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the unidentified bellfoundries.

19.   Seoul, Korea - EquivalentWeight lbs

• "name"?, pitch?, reported weight?, maker?, 1462
• Buksoo Palace grounds
  Seoul, Korea
• Oriental profile presumed; height 250 cm, diameter 172 cm
• Links:
  >
  > Where this bell lies in the total sequence of output of the unidentified bellfoundries.

nr.   City, Country - EquivalentWeight lbs

• "name"?, pitch?, reported weight?, maker?, year?
• Institution name and address
• Remarks
• Links:
  >
  

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This page was created 2006/11/15, and last revised 2009/04/29.

Please send comments or questions to csz_stl@swbell.net