While the third emperor of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) exercised a magnitude of greatness seldom seen among those who sat atop the Dragon Throne in any era of the imperial past, the legacy of Yongle is not that of a great leader when measured by today's standards of political correctness.

A great leader does not come to power by a coup, nor ruthlessly slaughter every known associate of political rivals, plus dig up and scatter the bones of their ancestors. A great leader isn't associated with legends of female sacrifice on engineering projects, nor has a recorded history of immolating (buried, not burned) 16 concubines to join him in his tomb.

Yet the greatness of Yongle (ÓÀÀÖ£¬meaning "perpetual happiness") as a statesman can inspire as well as horrify. He usurped the throne only after intrigue to strip hereditary princes of power aimed at him. As the Prince of Yan, he fought a three-year civil war in the face of great odds pitting him against the rest of the dynastic organization.

Once victorious, he was a patron of encyclopedic scholarship as well as economic infrastructure. His personal initiatives included border campaigns of tribal subjugation and oceanic exploration that expanded the geographic frontiers of the Ming empire.

The centre of Chinese political power for most of the last 600 years has been on a site established by Yongle's vision. The garrison town of Beiping (±±Æ½£¬Northern Peace) in his former fiefdom was renamed Beijing (±±¾©£¬Northern Capital) in 1403. He commanded three concentric walled enclosures (the Forbidden, Imperial and initial Outer Cities) be built in an urban design that survived from the first quarter of the fifteenth century until halfway through the twentieth century.

We trace the story of the famed Yongle Bell (ÓÀÀÖ´óÖÓ) from its present spot, then work our way back to its creation.

The last move made by the world's largest hanging bell to the Dazhongsi or Great Bell Temple (´óÖÓËÂ) took place in 1743 during the Qing (1644-1911) Dynasty. Emperor Qianlong (r. 1736-1795) wanted to use the bell's previous location, Wanshousi (ÍòÊÙËÂ), as a rest stop for his mother on her way from the Forbidden City (×Ͻû³Ç)to the Yuanmingyuan (Ô²Ã÷Ô°).

Until the Yongle bell arrived, the temple belonging to the Chan (Zen) sect of Buddhism was originally called the Jueshengsi or Temple of Awakening to Previous Existence (¾õÉúËÂ). It was built in 1733 by emperor Yongzheng (r. 1723-1735) and was used to give thanks for timely rain.

After Liberation in 1949, the temple was used as an elementary school belonging to the work unit of a nearby food processing factory. Since October 1985 it has been known as Dazhongsi and the Ancient Bell Museum (´óÖÓ˹ÅÖÓ²©Îï¹Ý). It is located on the north side of Beisanhuan Xilu in Haidian District. Since late September 2002, it has been accessible by subway from the Dazhongsi stop on Beijing's partially completed Line 13.

The Yongle specimen is the centrepiece of the museum's 400-plus bells. There are examples from across China, with part of the collection originals from temples that no longer exist in Beijing. There are displays showing the evolution of Chinese bells and the impressive history of metallurgy in China.

The museum is open Tuesday-Sunday 8:30-4:30. Admission is 10 yuan (US$1.20). For fees running from the gratifyingly cheap to ridiculously expensive, you can ring some of the bells. If you speak Chinese, call 6255-0819 for more information.

The further back in history we venture from this point, the more inconsistencies appear in the records regarding the Yongle Bell, especially when and how it was moved.

From possibly as early as the mid- 1580s until 1743 the Yongle Bell hung in the Wanshousi, or Temple of Ten Thousand Longevities. The temple was first built in 1577 by emperor Wanli's pious mother together with Feng Bao, a notorious eunuch much esteemed by the Ming emperor until 1584.

Wanli (r. 1573-1620) was the longest reigning Ming monarch and remembered for his personal extravagance with the public purse illustrated by activities such as moving the massive bell from the centre of Beijing out to the suburbs.

After it was cast (dates vary: 1406, 1418 and 1420) the bell was originally located at the Hanjingchang (ºº¾­³§), a publishing centre for Buddhist sutras in the reign of Yongle. This site later became the Songzhusi (ËÉÖñË£¬Temple of Sacrifices to the Mountains). Located on the northern end of Shatan Beijie(ɳ̲±±½Ö) in the eastern Imperial City, it is now used as a warehouse for the Mudan (Peony) Group.

There are several myths and motivations for the casting of the Yongle Bell. Like the other massive bell (hanging in the Bell Tower), several versions exist of a legend that the daughter of the foundry owner "jumped" into the molten bronze mixture in order to save her father after several unsuccessful attempts to cast the item. Another legend involved the necessity of human sacrifice to make a bell perfect.

As for reasons behind the bell in the first place, Yongle's instruments were considered one of three noteworthy engineering projects undertaken in his reign together with construction of the imperial palace and re-establishment of an Altar of Heaven.

Aside from being a symbol of investiture, the tolling of a bell in religious ceremonies was said to reach the depths of hell giving sinners a path leading to paradise. Yongle possibly worried about retribution for his bloodthirsty ways. The inside and outside of the bell is covered in multiple Buddhist sutras totaling more than 230,000 Chinese and Sanskrit characters.

The Yongle Bell, 6.75 metres tall with a diameter of 3.3 metres around its outer lip and weighing in at 46.5 tons is aptly referred to as the "King of Bells." It is the second largest after one in Moscow, but has the distinction of being the largest suspended functioning bell in the world.