Narrative
Full Description
Project narrative
On April 4, 2006, the cities of Wuhan and Christchurch signed a Friendship City agreement (New Zealand's equivalent to sister city agreement). Following the signing, the City of Wuhan gifted the Wuhan Bell was to Christchurch. The bell was a “bianzhong” made of ornate bronze that is similar to original bianzhong chime bells that were an important instrument in China’s ritual and court music going back to ancient times. In 2011, the wooden frame supporting the bell was damaged by the Christchurch earthquake and the bell was placed in storage. In 2016, in honor of the tenth anniversary of the agreement, a replacement steel frame made and donated by Hubei Province arrived in Christchurch and the bell was refurbished and reconstructed. On March 23, 2017, the instrument was been put back on display in the foyer of the Civic Offices. The donation of the replacement frame is captured via Record ID#99537.