Photos show how new technology helps keep one of Europe’s last bell makers alive in Austria
An employee works on the inside of a bell at the 400-year-old family-owned bell foundry Grassmayr in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
INNSBRUCK, Austria (AP) — Wearing protective gear to shield from the extreme heat of molten bronze, workers at one of the last bell foundries in Europe are casting bells weighing several tons.
One after another, the artisans carefully pour the molten metal into specially shaped molds held together with steel bands to create 12 bells for churches in Italy, Germany and Romania.
An employee inspects a bell at the 400-year-old family-owned bell foundry Grassmayr in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
An employee inspects a bell at the 400-year-old family-owned bell foundry Grassmayr in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Mathias Rentzsch secures a bracket on a bell at the 400-year-old family-owned bell foundry Grassmayr in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Mathias Rentzsch secures a bracket on a bell at the 400-year-old family-owned bell foundry Grassmayr in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Workers cast bronze bells at the 400-year-old, family-owned Grassmayr bell foundry in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Workers cast bronze bells at the 400-year-old, family-owned Grassmayr bell foundry in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Employees use a melting furnace at the 400-year-old family-owned bell foundry Grassmayr in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Employees use a melting furnace at the 400-year-old family-owned bell foundry Grassmayr in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Employees cast bronze bells at the 400-year-old, family-owned Grassmayr bell foundry in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Employees cast bronze bells at the 400-year-old, family-owned Grassmayr bell foundry in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Employees cast bronze bells at the 400-year-old, family-owned Grassmayr bell foundry in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Employees cast bronze bells at the 400-year-old, family-owned Grassmayr bell foundry in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
A worker casts a bronze bell at the 400-year-old, family-owned Grassmayr bell foundry in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
A worker casts a bronze bell at the 400-year-old, family-owned Grassmayr bell foundry in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Employees cast bronze bells at the 400-year-old, family-owned Grassmayr bell foundry in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Employees cast bronze bells at the 400-year-old, family-owned Grassmayr bell foundry in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Jotka Omar unpacks a bronze bell as he works at the 400-year-old, family-owned Grassmayr bell foundry in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Jotka Omar unpacks a bronze bell as he works at the 400-year-old, family-owned Grassmayr bell foundry in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Anto Bastianovic polishes a bronze bell at the 400-year-old, family-owned Grassmayr bell foundry in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Anto Bastianovic polishes a bronze bell at the 400-year-old, family-owned Grassmayr bell foundry in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Anto Bastianovic, an employee of the 400-year-old, family-owned Grassmayr bell foundry, smiles into the camera after casting bronze bells in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Anto Bastianovic, an employee of the 400-year-old, family-owned Grassmayr bell foundry, smiles into the camera after casting bronze bells in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Old bells stand in the backyard of the 400-year-old family-owned bell foundry Grassmayr in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Old bells stand in the backyard of the 400-year-old family-owned bell foundry Grassmayr in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Wax covers the wall in the model workshop of the 400-year-old family-owned bell foundry Grassmayr in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Wax covers the wall in the model workshop of the 400-year-old family-owned bell foundry Grassmayr in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Relief molds fill shelves in the model workshop of the 400-year-old family-owned bell foundry Grassmayr in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Relief molds fill shelves in the model workshop of the 400-year-old family-owned bell foundry Grassmayr in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
The wax-logo of the 400-year-old family-owned bell foundry Grassmayr lie in the workshop in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
The wax-logo of the 400-year-old family-owned bell foundry Grassmayr lie in the workshop in Innsbruck, Austria, Friday, July 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
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