Bell #9801 will be unveiled in Prague today in memory of the bells taken away by the Nazis
Update: 28/08/2022 00:44
Issued by: 28/08/2022, 00:44
Prague – The memorial Bell #9801 commemorating the fate of the bells that were taken by the Nazis from the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia to Germany during the Second World War will be unveiled on Prague’s Smetana Embankment in the early evening. The bell will ring at the so-called tentacle until the end of September, after which the work on the pontoon moved to another place in the metropolis. In the future, tentatively starting in 2024, the bell is to be permanently rung in the bell tower on Rohanské Island.
The creation of the monument was initiated by the association Sanctus Castulus, which organized a public collection for its production. The bell was made by masters at the oldest Austrian bell factory Grassmayr in Innsbruck and arrived in Prague this week by ship. It measures 187 centimeters, weighs 9,801 kilograms, and its mantle is decorated with fragments from bells that were destroyed during the war.
The weight of the commemorative bell is given by the number of bells that were taken from the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia in the summer of 1942 to the war factories in Hamburg. The unveiling will take place today after 17:00, then the bell will be blessed by priest Tomáš Halík and then it will be rung at 17:30 by the bell ringers from the Sanctus Castulus association. From 19:00 there will be a program for the public with a light and music show.