According to the Extensive Anthologies of Tianfu, the Yongle Bell was cast at the Han- Language Sutra Depot located within the Gate of Desheng (Moral Victory). It seems that the Han- Language Sutra Depot was the site where the bell was cast. At the beginning of the 1980s, staff members of the museum made a survey there. They did not find any traces of the Han- Language Sutra Depot, but they found a horizontal inscribed board from the window- sill of a house in Zhuzhong (Casting Bells) Lane within the Gate of Desheng. The board bears the characters "the golden furnace for casting bells, the Niangniang Miao (Temple of the Goddess of Fertility)." Later from the Metal and Stone Department of Beijing Library, they found three rubbings from stone tablets at the bell-casting Temple of the Goddess of Fertility. One was from a stone tablet inscribed by Liu Fangyuan in 1651 during the reign of Emperor Shunzhi and the inscription referred to the bell-casting yard. Another rubbing was taken from an inscription made on a stone tablet by Daona, the abbot of the temple, in 1785 during the reign of Emperor Qianlong. The inscription contained a record of the rebuilding of the main hall of the bell - casting Temple of the Goddess of Fertility. The third stone tablet was erected in the 7th year of the reign of Emperor Daoguang (1827). The inscription referred to the bell - casting yard at the Temple of the Goddess of Fertility west of the Drum Tower. The three stone tablets carried different appellations, but they were found from the same place. This can be confirmed by a section in the book Anecdotes of the Capital: "The bell-casting yard is situated east of the Gate of Desheng. There is also the Zhenwu Miao (Temple of Genuine Prowess). Inside it is a stone tablet with an inscription written by Liu Fangyuan in the 8th year of the reign of Shunzhi (1651). The Huayan Bell was suspended in the Wanshou Si (Temple of Longevity) in the past. Now it has been moved to the Juesheng Si (Temple of Awakening) in the north of the city." The horizontal inscribed board at the bell - casting Temple of the Goddess of Fertility and the stone tablet erected in the 7th year of the reign of Daoguang have been collected by the Big Bell Temple.
Where was the Han- Language Sutra Depot? The former site was at the Songzhu Temple and the adjacent Fayuan Temple and Zhizhu Temple. According to a stone tablet inscription on the Fayuan Temple, "The Fayuan Temple is to the left of the Songzhu Temple. To the right is the Zhizhu Temple. The Buddhist temples are adjacent to each other. They are the sites of the former Han- Language Sutra Depot. During the reign of Yongle of the Ming Dynasty, lamas were invited to write Buddhist sutras. Hence the names of the Ethnic - Languages Sutra Depot and the Han - Language Sutra Depot." The Han- Language Sutra Depot was not a bell - casting workshop. According to the History of the Ming Court written by Liu Ruoyu during the reign of Wanli of the Ming Dynasty, "The Han- Language Sutra Depot was set up in the Imperial City. A number of eunuchs … On the birthday of the emperor, the lunar New Year' s Day and the Festival of the Dead Spirits, religious rites were performed in the palace. Grand ministers of the Imperial Household Department paid their respects to Buddha and flew streamers like monks. They wore Buddhist caps, kasayas and black garments as monks did, but they kept their hair. When the service was over, they put on their official garments again." The Han- Language Sutra Depot was an institution of Buddhist services under the charge of the Palace Treasury. So it is not difficult to understand why the Yongle Bell "has always been stored at the l-tan- Language Sutra Depot" as described in the Brief Account of Sights in the Imperial Capital.
The Yongle Bell was carried from the bell - casting yard to the Han- Language Sutra Depot in the Imperial City as its first move in history. According to the Private Gleanings of the Wanli Reign, "The Temple of Longevity was built at a site three and a half kilometers outside the Xizhimen (Straight West Gate). There are the Ethnic- Languages Sutra Depot and the Han- Language Sutra Depot. They have been out of repair for many years. Emperor Muzong had them repaired, but the project was not completed. Han- language sutras were moved there." So the Yongle Bell was also moved to the Temple of Longevity during the reign of Emperor Wanli. Every day it was struck by six monks. It served as a musical instrument for blessings and Buddhist services. This was the second move of the Yongle Bell.
The Yongle Bell was transferred from the Temple of Longevity to the Temple of Awakening as the third move. Who made the decision? Almost all the relevant historical documents maintain that it was Emperor Qianlong who ordered the move. In 1980, we found a memorial to the emperor from China No. 1 Historical Archives Museum. The memorial was recorded in the archives of memorials of the Imperial Household Department in the 4th month of the 11th year of the Yongzheng period (1733). The full text is as follows: "Imperial Prince Zhuang and other ministers presented a memorial to the Emperor on the 16th day of the month: Concerning the move of the bell at the Temple of Longevity, Vice Bureau Director Guan Zhining and Bureau Secretary Hong Wenlan found out that since the Temple of Awakening is located in the north of the capital and southeast of the Yuanmingyuan (Garden of Perfection and Brightness) and the body of the bell is made of metal, it will be most appropriate to move the bell to the Temple of Awakening. If it is moved to a place southeast of the capital, it will be located in the direction of the Tanlang Muxing (literally meaning the star of the wood) and the metal and the wood will subdue each other. So it will be inappropriate to move the bell there. The Temple of Awakening consists of five halls, and the rear hall is connected with the element of earth: If another building is constructed behind that hall, it will signify the mutual generation of metal and earth. The new building will be most appropriate for housing the bell. If Your Majesty permit, we will, in conjunction with Su Hena, present to you a blueprint of the bell building to be built behind the rear hall. The Emperor approved the memorial."
A lot of data and archives can prove that the Yongle Bell was suspended in the newly built big bell tower before the 8th year of the reign of Emperor Qianlong (1743) at the latest. As it is put correctly in the Cultural Relics and Archaeology in Beijing, "It was decided to move the bell in the 11th year of the reign of Emperor Yongzheng. The entire project of building the big bell tower and suspending the big bell was completed at the beginning of the reign of Emperor Qianlong."
