H. Rüetschi
H. Rüetschi is one of the last and oldest bell foundries in Switzerland. It is located in the city of Aarau , which is why it is also called the Bell City .
history
Bells have been cast in Aarau since 1367 . At the beginning, the foundry was run by a Reber family. Various other genders followed later. In 1607 Hans-Jakob Stalder had a smelter built on the "Rain", where the foundry still stands today. At the beginning of the 19th century, Johann-Heinrich Bär sold the foundry to his two employees, Jakob and Sebastian Rüetschi. With the introduction of Krupp steel guns in 1873, the last cannon balls were delivered. The Rüetschi family of bell foundries died out in 1917, which is why the bell foundry was converted into a stock corporation in 1920. Friedrich Wilhelm Schilling expanded his knowledge here.
Business areas
In addition to the casting of church bells and other large bells, Rüetschi is also busy with other casting applications:
- Casting of small bells such as house and ship bells, souvenir, decorative and herd bells
- Casting of works of art, mainly bronze sculptures
- Casting objects for landscape architects
- Technical cast in bronze , brass , aluminum and special alloys for various industrial and technical applications
In addition, the company offers know-how around the installation of large bells: project planning, vibration isolation in bell towers, acoustics and sound analyzes, electrical installation and chimes, steel construction for the bell cage construction, yokes, clapper and iron fittings. And last but not least, tower clocks are often associated with church bells . With the takeover of the tower clock factory Mäder, repairs and maintenance of tower and facade clocks can be offered. In addition, rooms at the Rüetschi bell foundry are also made available to other service companies.
Examples of cast bells
place | Casting year | Chime | inscription | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|
Freiburg (FR) , St. Nicholas Cathedral | 1367 | it 1 | Foundry Walter Reber | |
Hilterfingen | 14th century | Fusa sum arow ("poured to Aarau") | ||
Aarau City Church | 1899 | as 0 | "A solid castle is our God" | 5'275 kg - and seven other bells from 1862, 1899 and 1966 |
Pauluskirche (Basel) | 1901 | b 0 | Be strong in the Lord | 3,575 kg - and four other bells from 1901 |
Rorschach , Ref. Church | 1904 | f 0 | 8,137 kg | |
Olten, Church of Peace | 1928 | as 0 | A MIGHTY FORTRESS IS OUR GOD | 5000 kg - and four more bells from 1928 |
Johanneskirche (Basel) | 1936 | of the 1st | Sanctus, holy, holy, holy is the Lord God | 2,033 kg - and four other bells from 1936 |
Gossau SG , St. Andreas | 1958 | f 0 | 8,695 kg (largest Rüetschi bell ever cast) - and five other bells from 1926 | |
Niedergösgen | 1960 | ges 0 | 7,020 kg | |
Expo64 | 1964 | Ut omnes sint unum ("That all are one") | In the Zurich Airport prayer room | |
Pfäffikon SZ , St. Meinrad | 1965 | ges 0 | With your only begotten Son and the Holy Spirit you are one God | 7'040 kg - and five more bells from 1965 |
Bremgarten town church | 1986 | b 0 | «ST. NIKOLAUS », below with smaller letters« BISHOP OF MYRA • A MAN OF KIND • AND HELPING » | 3,013 kg - and five more bells from 1965 |
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c History of the Aarau bell foundry ( Memento of the original from April 4, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. on the company's website
- ^ Aarau town church - bells