Made of bronze and weighing 630 kg, the object commemorates the bell that once adorned the chapel at Fort Ville-Marie. A symbol of the Christian pioneers who came to found Montréal in 1642, it reminds us today of the daily lives of these first Montrealers. The bell was heard at ordinary and extraordinary moments in the citizens’ lives: it sounded the hours of the day, welcomed the birth of new citizens, paid a final tribute to the deceased, gathered crowds, and signalled inhabitants to take refuge in the fort during enemy attacks.

It is also a symbol of the alliances that united the Euro-Québécois and Amerindian communities at the time of the Great Peace of Montréal in 1701—a unique moment in time during which some thirty nations from across the American Northeast came together at this very spot.

Made at the Paccard Foundry in France, the bell will be installed atop the Fort Ville-Marie building in 2017. On May 17, on the anniversary of the founding of Montréal, we will all get to hear it ring for the first time!

In the meantime, the bell is being exhibited in the Museum’s main entrance until February.
Be among those who get the chance to see it up close—only for a limited time!