Which biblical verse is inscribed on Philadelphia’s Liberty Bell?

Leviticus 25:10 is the biblical verse inscribed on Philadelphia’s Liberty Bell.

The inscription comes from the King James Bible: “Proclaim LIBERTY throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof.” It refers to the Jubilee year in Leviticus, a period associated with freedom and the restoration of property. The verse helped give the bell its later symbolic association with liberty.

The bell was cast in London in 1751 for the Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly and arrived in Philadelphia in 1752. It cracked during an early test and was recast locally. The famous large crack developed later, and the bell was eventually retired from regular ringing.

The Liberty Bell was not originally named the Liberty Bell. That name became common in the nineteenth century, especially as abolitionists adopted the bell as a symbol. The object’s Revolutionary-era history and later symbolism are related but not identical, so the inscription should not be confused with a line from the Declaration of Independence.