The bells of churches as the subjects of local history

Bažnyčių bokštų varpai - vertingas kultūros paveldas. Neabejotina, kad objektas turi būti tyrinėjamas kompleksiškai - religiniu, kultūrologiniu, technologiniu aspektais. Tai duotų informacijos labai įvairių sričių-meno, amato, kalbos, geografinių vietovių istorijai, heraldikai, genealogijai. Jų įsigijimo aplinkybės, įrašai, dekoras yra betarpiškai susiję su parapijos ir bažnyčios istorija, todėl gali būti traktuojami kaip lokalinės istorijos objektai. Straipsnyje aptariama N. Žagarės, Žeimelio, Daugailių bažnyčių varpai, duomenys, kurie pasiekė mūsų dienas. Bendra visų bokšto varpų, kaip Lietuvos kultūros vertybių, problema ta, kad jie praktiškai neprieinami besidomintiems paveldu. Būtina paspartinti Lietuvos bažnyčių varpų ir bažnytinių varpų inventorizacijąThe bell is a great cultural value. It is a significant monument to the art and culture history. A fair number of bells existing in Lithuania (at present there are 249 of them in our country) are included into register of state cultural values. Despite that, just some of them are scientifically described, including a comprehensive analysis of their characteristics and historical value. Not only the bells, which were founded in our country, but also those which were brought from other countries, were important, because they gave knowledge about mercantile, economic and confessional relations. Moreover, they are signs of a historical memory. From this point of view the object is especially easy, because it was normal to inscribe the years, the names of parish and of parson and of course, the formers of it. Normally, it was practised to baptise a bell giving a name of founder for it. There were nice traditions of bronze moulding in Lithuania; the trade began to decline and go downhill at the second half of 18th c. There were some reasons for this: the economic and political upheaval in the country, competition with foreign foundries. Occupation authority did not support development of this trade in the rebellious province, because it had in mind the possibility to use the foundries for making guns in case of mutiny. From the other hand, the products brought from the other countries began to compete with local production more and more, because our country had no local raw material and the expensions of transport had been cheapening steadily. These tendencies especially became emphasized after the railways had appearedVytauto Didžiojo universitetasŠvietimo akademij