Today, 11:31
After more than 110 years, the historic chime of the bells at Riga Cathedral is to be restored. Three new church bells were consecrated on Sunday and will join the existing ones. During the First World War, four historic bells were taken from the Cathedral to Russia, of which only one returned to Latvia. The new bells were manufactured in Germany, whilst their installation was funded by donors, Latvian Radio reported on October 11.
The tower of Rīga Cathedral has two bell galleries. The upper, open section of the tower houses the small bell gallery, whilst the lower section contains the large bell gallery. Almost all of the Cathedral’s historic bells were lost during the First World War, said Jānis Vanags, retired archbishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia, during the consecration service. At that time, almost all the church bells in Latvia were taken to Russia to prevent them from falling into the hands of German troops.
“They were, as it were, catalogued and carefully stored in certain monasteries. But after the peace treaty was signed between the Republic of Latvia and Soviet Russia, only one – the smallest of the bells that had been taken away – returned to the Cathedral,” explained Vanags.
This bell remained in use until 13 January 1991, when it cracked whilst summoning people to the All-Latvian public rally on the banks of the Daugava.
The new bells were cast by the “Rincker” bell foundry, which has been in operation since 1590. The three new bells have been named Jānis, Gabriels and Marija. The largest of them weighs almost three tonnes, whilst the other two weigh approximately two and a half and one and a half tonnes respectively.
“There will be an even more magnificent range of sounds that we will be able to hear from the Cathedral tower. The sound will be much, much more impressive, as these bells will make a significant contribution to this very splendour of sound,” explained Ronalds Lūsis, head of the Riga Cathedral restoration project.
The new bells are not exact replicas of those that were once removed, but have been created, inspired by the historical ones. The restoration of the Cathedral’s historic bells had long been delayed by the high costs involved. The project has now been realised thanks to donors.
“The primary function of bells is to call people to the house of God. Since time immemorial, bell towers have stood beside churches, gradually becoming an integral part of the church itself. And this is a call – a call to prayer. (..) The splendour of these bells seeks to reflect, in some small way, what takes place inside the church – namely, the splendour of spiritual life that God offers us in Christ,” explained Elija Godiņš, Dean of Riga Cathedral.
We will have to wait a little longer before the new bells are rung. Work is due to begin next week on hoisting them into the cathedral tower. The bells, which weigh several tonnes, will first be lifted onto a platform and then moved inside the tower.
“In a month’s time, representatives from Germany will arrive to install, tune and ring in these bells. It’s not simply a matter of hoisting them up, hanging them and having them start to ring. It’s quite a major undertaking,” explained Lūsis.
The new bells are to be placed in the masonry section of the tower – in the spot where the historic cathedral bells once hung. The cathedral parish hopes to complete the installation of the new large bells by mid-November.
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