Philadelphia’s Liberty Bell cites the Bible book of Leviticus in its inscription.
The wording comes from Leviticus 25:10: “Proclaim LIBERTY Throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants Thereof.” Pennsylvania’s Provincial Assembly ordered the bell in 1751 for the State House, now known as Independence Hall. The London firm Lester and Pack cast it in 1752.
The bell cracked during an early test and was recast in Philadelphia by John Pass and John Stow. Its famous large crack developed much later, probably in the nineteenth century; the exact cause and date remain uncertain. Popular stories connect the bell with the Declaration of Independence, but there is no reliable evidence that it rang on July 4, 1776.
Abolitionists helped popularize the name “Liberty Bell” in the 1830s, linking the inscription’s message to the antislavery movement. The bell became a national symbol of freedom and was displayed across the country during a 1915–1917 liberty tour.