Angel from a Church Bell

On February 20 the Yakubovsky House, specializing in exclusive collections of gifts, organized a presentation of the Guardian Angel as part of the project, Spiritual Treasures of Ukraine, meant to restore [and reproduce] ancient Ukrainian oberehs [this term has no exact English equivalent; it can mean a talisman, an old guardian deity/angel, etc.].

The angel was cast from a discarded late nineteenth century church bell. Clergymen say that such bells should last a couple of centuries, depending on the alloy. Once they were made from copper, adding some lithium, iron, and lead. It is also alleged that adding silver makes bells sound especially loud, clear, and melodious. This is legend, because silver has never been added to bell alloys, and adding it makes them sound worse.

The Guardian Angel was cast using a technique dating back over three centuries. The sanctified bell was melted in an electric furnace and then poured in a ceramic mold. Several minutes later an angel appeared, with a halo and wings, an image we all remember from our childhood. Cast when it was biting cold outside, the angel came as a symbol of absolution on the eve of the Lent.

Several copies were made adding some silver and metal elements of eleventh century pectoral crosses no longer worn due to wear and tear.

The Spiritual Treasures of Ukraine project commenced at the turn of the third millennium. On New Year Eve 2000, a statue of the Archangel Michael was cast in the obereh fashion of Kyiv Rus’. It was shortly followed by a Crucifix and St. George the Dragon Slayer. Work is underway on icons of the Virgin Mary and St. Nicholas.

Such guardian angels and icons are presented to churches, monasteries, and children’s homes. A guardian angel is a very personal obereh, so anyone can acquire it. Poet Ivan Malkovych once wrote, “May angels never leave your shoulders, big and small.”