Leviticus 25:10 supplied the Liberty Bell’s inscription about proclaiming liberty throughout the land.
The bell bears a version of the biblical passage: “Proclaim LIBERTY Throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants Thereof.” The words come from Leviticus 25:10, which concerns the Jubilee year in ancient Israel, when liberty was proclaimed and property and social obligations were reset.
The bell was commissioned in 1751 by the Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly and cast in London in 1752. It was originally called the State House Bell because it hung at the Pennsylvania State House, now Independence Hall. The name “Liberty Bell” became common decades later through abolitionist usage.
The bell cracked more than once and was recast by Philadelphia founders John Pass and John Stow. A popular story says it rang on July 4, 1776, but there is no contemporary evidence for that claim. It most likely became associated with independence through later memory and symbolism.