It has been some time since Domažlice bell ringer Jirka Kohout invited us to ring the bell together in the leaning tower of the Church of the Nativity of Our Lady in Domažlice. Liborek and I were excited by his invitation and we went to see him and @zazvony on the second Sunday of Advent, 10/12/2023. The 56-meter-high cylindrical tower itself, which is deviated from the vertical axis by 59 cm, attracts us every time we approach Liborek and I will bring her closer. Several floors and 194 steps need to be climbed to reach it. Today, 3 beautiful bells are hung in it, and during Advent, the smallest but oldest Advent bell is added to the walkway every year. The largest bell hung on the west side of the belfry was cast on May 27, 1824 by master bell-maker Petr Pavel Perner in Pilsen and is called Zikmund (sometimes he was also called Vousáč after the bearded faces that decorate the ears of the crown). The bell itself weighs 1,760 kg and with accessories almost 2 tons. It is suspended on a wooden stool and seated in toothed segment bearings. Thanks to this and the counterweight, only one ringer can manually ring the bell. According to available information, the height of the bell is 124 cm, according to our measurement, the height without the crown is 124 cm, which has another 20 cm. We measured the bottom diameter at 139/140 cm, while 143 cm is stated. In order for Sigismund to be hung, two grooves had to be carved into the jamb of the west window for him to pass through (to this day it can still be observed from the outside). The bell is really richly and beautifully decorated, whether with the relief of St. Sigismund accompanied by angels, as well as six oval cartouches with a typical "Pernerian" covolite theme, and the crown of the bell (beards) is also decorated. A number of Latin inscriptions appear on the bell - in two lines under the cap (translation): "As a result of the fire that broke out in the city on May 7, 1822, and since the tower was consumed by fire, from the four scattered bells, I recognize these two bells Zikmund and Mary restored and from the Church of the Annunciation. The two bells of the Virgin Mary, Petr and Pavel, were taken.", then on the body in three groups (a whole series of contemporary personalities of the city) and in one line also on the wreath of the bell (translation): "These two bells were cast in the city of Pilsen, by me, By Peter Pavle Perner, burgher and bell ringer, years of lord 1824 on 27th May.” On the bell there is an additional inscription in white 1824 and inside the bell there is a huge number of inscriptions. The second largest bell on the Domažlica tower with a height of 68/69 cm and a crown 14 cm high, with a bottom diameter of 80/82 cm, a weight of 345 kg and a strike tone of h1 was originally named Pavel and hung in the U Svatých church in the southern suburb until 1822 . It was cast in 1650 in Nuremberg. Its workmanship is very similar to the bells of Jan Pricquey of Klato, however, there is no bell ringer's mark/cartouche on the bell, so the bell ringer is unknown. After a devastating fire, from 1824 it hung together with the equally old Petr bell (this bell succumbed to war requisitions during World War II) on the Domažlica tower. During the transfer, the Paul bell was re-consecrated, which has since been called Marie, and because it was most often rung at noon, it was also called the Midday. Under the cap, the bell bears a Latin inscription in three lines: "This happened under the especially venerable Mr. Matěj Vojtěch Malakovský of Kronberg, under his emperor. The grace of judge Mr. Matěj Pavlovic from Lumensein for Mr. Jiří Beran, burgomaster, and for Mr. WSK, chairman of the patronage department. Year 1650." In the fourth line, there is ornamental decoration and festoons with angel heads and hanging cups. On the body are reliefs of the crucified Jesus with Mary and John, then Peter, Paul and the Mother of God with the baby Jesus. Today, the third bell is called nothing else than Umířáček, but it was previously called Jan, since it was said to have hung in the steeple of the chapel of St. Jan Nepomucký. During the First World War, it was taken down and placed in a museum, which, however, did not save it from being requisitioned by soldiers in 1942. It was the only one that eventually returned to Domažlice (found in Hamburg) and in 1945 it was hung in the eastern niche of the belfry instead of the requisitioned Wenceslas bell. The die was cast in 1729 in Zachariáš Dittrich's bell-ring workshop in the New Town of Prague for the church of St. Antonín Papuanský. Its height is 38/39 cm and the crown is 8 cm, the bottom diameter is 47/49 cm and it weighs 61 kg. Under the cap, we can read a one-line Latin inscription: "AFVLGURE ET TEMPESTATE LIBERA NOS DNE IESV CHRISTE 1729" (From storm and lightning deliver us, Lord Jesus Christ 1729). Below it is an interesting strip of ornamental decoration. On the lower part of the neck there is a relief of the Virgin Mary with Jesus Christ and below it, at the transition to the wreath, a plastic line. The smallest and at the same time the oldest bell in Domažlice was cast around the year 1500 by an unknown bell maker. Today, however, they call it Advent/Adventník, because it is regularly hung in a special structure on the tower's corridor only during Advent. The bell weighs 12 kg and bears the German inscription: HILF GOTT MIR, which is repeated three times. The belt is also filled with Gothic ornaments. If you go to Domažlice, go @zazvony to the leaning tower. #bells #domazlice #domazlickavez #kostel #zvon #bell #harang #dzwon #cloche #glocke #campana