London is soon going to lose one of its most familiar sounds when the world-famous Big Ben falls silent for repairs. The “bonging” chimes that have marked the passing of time for Londoners since 1859 will fall silent for months beginning in 2017 as part of a three-year 29 million pounds conservation project.
Of course, “Big Ben” is the nickname of the Great Bell and the bell itself is not in bad shape—even though it does have a huge crack in it. The bell weighs nearly 14 tons and it cracked in 1859 when it was first bonged with a hammer that was way too heavy. The crack was never repaired. Instead the bell was rotated one eighth of a turn and a lighter (200 kilograms) hammer was installed. The cracked bell has a characteristic sound which we have all grown to love, so maybe best leave it alone.
Instead, it is the Elizabeth Tower (1859) and the clock mechanism (1854), designed by Denison and Airy, that need attention.
