大笨钟介绍 英文版

THE STORY OF BIG BEN
（没有中文翻译，反正也不是难的句子，看一下就能懂的）
At 9'-0" diameter, 7'-6" high, and weighing in at 13 tons 10 cwts 3 qtrs 15lbs (13,760 Kg), the hour bell of the Great Clock of Westminster - known worldwide as 'Big Ben' - is the most famous bell ever cast at Whitechapel. This picture, painted by William T. Kimber, the head moulder responsible for casting the bell, shows George Mears with his wife and daughter inspecting the casting prior to despatch. Big Ben was cast on Saturday 10th April 1858, but its story begins more than two decades earlier....
On 16th October 1834, fire succeeded where Guy Fawkes and his fellow plotters had failed on 5th November 1605, and destroyed the Palace of Westminster, long the seat of the British government. Those few bits of the Old Palace that survived the fire - most notably Westminster Hall, which was built between 1097 and 1099 by William Rufus - were incorporated into the new buildings we know today, along with many new features.

Big Ben remains the largest bell ever cast at Whitechapel. Visitors to the foundry pass through a full size profile of the bell that frames the main entrance as they enter the building. The original moulding gauge employed to form the mould used to cast Big Ben hangs on the end wall of the foundry above the furnaces to this very day.

Among the gift items available from Whitechapel Bell Foundry are a finely detailed miniature of the bell itself and an illustrated booklet about Big Ben. These can both be found on our merchandising page.

以下是中文介绍（和上面英语内容不一样，仅供常识参考）
大本钟
大本钟（Big Ben，坐标：51°30′02.2〃N, 00°07′28.6〃W），或称大笨钟，即威斯敏斯特宫(Palace of Westminster)钟塔，英国国会会议厅附属的钟楼 (Clock Tower) 的大报时钟的昵称。位于威斯敏斯特桥的南面桥头，与英国议会大厦相连，英国议会大厦的北角，钟楼高79米，钟楼四面的圆形钟盘，直径为6.7米，是伦敦的传统地标。坐地铁可以在威斯敏斯特桥站下车。作为伦敦市的标志以及英国的象征，大本钟巨大而华丽，重13.5吨，四个钟面的面积有两平方米左右。大本钟从1859年就为伦敦城报时，根据格林尼治时间每隔一小时敲响一次，至今将近一个半世纪，尽管这期间大本钟曾两度裂开而重铸。现在大本钟的钟声仍然清晰、动听。

概述

1859年，大钟由当时的英王工务大臣本杰明·霍尔爵士监制，铸造时耗资2.7万英镑。“大本”钟被视为伦敦的象征，凡到伦敦观光的人，无不想到钟楼周围，站在议会桥上欣赏伦敦这个独具一格的建筑。1834年整个西敏被大火所毁，目前的这座97米高的钟楼是1837年维多利亚女王登基时建造的。大钟造于1856年，以建造工程的第一名监督官本杰明爵士的名字命名，叫"BIG BEN"(大本钟)。1857年该钟出现裂痕，于1859年重新铸造。。

大本钟的确有些笨重.钟盘的直径为7米,有四个钟面,时针和分针的长度分别为2.75米和4.27米,钟摆重305公斤,大钟总重量为13.5吨.

英国议会大厦原来并没有镶嵌大本钟,1834年,因有人在议会大厦炉子里大量焚烧政府文件而引起火灾,把大厦夷为平地.1840年议会大厦开始重建,大本钟1859年建于议会大厦主体的东北角,由当时的工务大臣本杰明·霍尔爵士监制,耗资2.7万英镑,为了纪念他的功绩,取名为大本钟,本是本杰明的昵称.

根据格林尼治时间,大本钟每隔一个小时报时一次,报时声深沉浑厚,方圆数英里之外都能听到其钟声的回响.大本钟装有麦克风,与英国广播公司(BBC)相连,因此每当大钟报时,人们都能从BBC的广播中听到其铿锵有力的声音.

这个钟铸造好以后，给它取什么名字的问题难倒了英国君臣，有一个大臣悄悄地说“就叫‘大本’算了。”——原来铸钟大臣姓“本”，后来大家都把这口钟叫“大本”了，也就是“大笨”了。

“大本钟”于2005年5月27日晚突然停走了1个多小时。技术人员现在还不明白这座有着147年历史的大钟为何“罢工”？ 英国议会大厦一名工程师28日说，位于议会大厦东侧高95米的钟楼上的大本钟在当地时间27日晚10时07分出现了故障，其分针停止转动。接着，分针开始缓慢转动，在10时20分又停了一次。这一 停就是1个半小时，此后才恢复了正常。

一些人猜测说，可能是炎热的天气造成了这一问题。28日伦敦的最高气温达到了31．8摄氏度。气象部门说，这是自1953年以来英格兰地区5月份中最炎热的一天。但那名议会大厦工程师认为，这一说法缺乏依据。“我们得知有一点小故障，但接着它就再次开始运转，”他说。

大本钟一向以其准时而闻名。二战中纳粹德国对伦敦的狂轰滥炸也未能将它摧毁。不过，毕竟是有着一百多岁的“高龄”，它也出过一些小问题。例如1962年元旦，一场大雪就让它的零点钟声比正常时间晚了10分钟。

时间关系，中文的部分我就不给你翻译了，你可以仔细阅读下面介绍（引用于http://www.aboutbritain.com/BigBen.htm）：

Big Ben is one of London's best-known landmarks, and looks most spectacular at night when the clock faces are illuminated. You even know when parliament is in session, because a light shines above the clock face.

The four dials of the clock are 23 feet square, the minute hand is 14 feet long and the figures are 2 feet high. Minutely regulated with a stack of coins placed on the huge pendulum, Big Ben is an excellent timekeeper, which has rarely stopped.

The name Big Ben actually refers not to the clock-tower itself, but to the thirteen ton bell hung within. The bell was named after the first commissioner of works, Sir Benjamin Hall.

This bell came originally from the old Palace of Westminster, it was given to the Dean of St. Paul's by William III. Before returning to Westminster to hang in its present home, it was refashioned in Whitechapel in 1858. The BBC first broadcast the chimes on the 31st December 1923 - there is a microphone in the turret connected to Broadcasting House.

During the second world war in 1941, an incendiary bomb destroyed the Commons chamber of the Houses of Parliament, but the clock tower remained intact and Big Ben continued to keep time and strike away the hours, its unique sound was broadcast to the nation and around the world, a welcome reassurance of hope to all who heard it.

There are even cells within the clock tower where Members of Parliament can be imprisoned for a breach of parliamentary privilege, though this is rare; the last recorded case was in 1880.

The tower is not open to the general public, but those with a "special interest" may arrange a visit to the top of the Clock Tower through their local (UK) MP.

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