Ringing in an old tradition

Russia beyond the headlines ^ | December 10, 2011 | Grigory Kubatian

[bad company]

Although their sound used to be heard throughout the Russian countryside, church bells fell silent during the Soviet era. Now the classic ringing is being brought back to life.

Church bells have always had a special significance in Russia. Their sounds alerted Russians to important events ranging from festivals to the outbreak of fires. When the Bolsheviks began destroying church bells after the revolutions of 1917, they were not only committing an act of vandalism, but a deed full of gloomy, prophetic importance. Russia lost its voice and hearing for a long time thereafter.

During the rise and fall of the Soviet Union, Russian bells were silent; they were cracked, cut down and sent abroad, relegated to forgotten churches in distant corners. Up until the October Revolution, the volume of bells cast in Russia had been as much as 2,000 tons annually. Today bell production in Russia is enjoying somewhat of a renaissance. One of the cities where this ancient art is being brought back to life is Voronezh. In 1989, local entrepreneur Valery Anisimov opened his own foundry outside the city and has since then cast more than 20,000 bells.

Anisimov, 55, named his foundry Vera (Faith), after his wife and in honor of the Christian virtue. He keeps his long dark hair tied back in a knot on the nape of his neck, in the manner of a monk; his beard is flecked with grey. He crosses himself each time he passes a church — and in Voronezh there are many. His speech is calm, yet forceful. He uses many Church Slavonic expressions, which is not surprising as his foundry’s principal client is the Russian Orthodox Church.

[bad company]

Good to see.

[Jet Jaguar]

Bump