reading time: 7 min.

“For the cloud of the Lord was upon the Tabernacle by day, and fire was in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys”.

Exodus 40, 34–45:38

Raffaello Sazio, engraved by Cesare Fantetti, Descendebat nubis columna, second half of the 17th century. Etching. London, Victoria and Albert Museum

The bell tower as a beacon in the night

The biblical passage quoted above refers to the long journey of the people of Israel across the desert. God accompanies His people as a cloud by day and as a column of fire by night; He does not reveal Himself directly but in an enigmatic way, without dispelling all the fear and uncertainty of the fugitives. If He were to hide, what would become of them? Would they lose their way? Their emotions oscillate between the anguish of abandonment and the certainty of a presence, between solitude and trust. This passage from Exodus made us think of the bell tower as a beacon of light. We imagine a traveller, a pilgrim who, during the night, tries to orient himself by the light of the bell tower, a light that appears and then fades again. It becomes a metaphor for the believer who wavers between the anguish of abandonment and the gentle certainty of an unseen guide.

Space and time. The bell tower as a symbol

Rising towards the sky with its soaring form, the bell tower expresses humanity’s longing to ascend to God. Beyond its religious function, over time it has also acquired a civic role. Originally confined within monastic walls for the exclusive use of monks, it later moved outside the cloister, standing beside churches and in public squares. It became a landmark and a point of gathering for the community, marking not only liturgical hours but also the rhythms of daily life, festivities and emergencies. The bell tower, this terrestrial lighthouse, must remain recognisable at all times:

Giovanni Segantini, Ave Maria a Trasbordo (detail), 1886. Oil on canvas. St. Moritz, Segantini Museum

by day through the sound of its bells, and by night through the light that reveals its presence and guides travellers across the territory.

The lighting of a bell tower must emphasise its verticality which, as previously said, symbolises humankind’s desire to rise towards celestial light. Illumination should therefore not be concentrated at the base or the lower part of the shaft, but should instead express its upward tension, gathering strength as it ascends without breaking apart, highlighting the continuity of its surfaces and culminating in the belfry and in the roof.

Lighting should also integrate with the rural or urban landscape in which bell towers are set. An excessive light would isolate the tower from its community, diminishing its role as a point of reference. Every lighting design must therefore begin with an evaluation of the context, observed at different scales: near the bell tower and from afar.

The bell tower and architectural styles

Over the centuries, bell towers and belfries have changed form in relation to shifts in society and in the historical role of the Church (from the Romanesque to the Gothic to the Baroque, to name only a few). Their lighting must therefore highlight the specific qualities of each architectural morphology and express the underlying intentions of the builders of the period.

Romanesque bell tower

Gothic bell tower

Baroque bell tower

The Romanesque bell tower, with its solid, squared volumes and thick walls that isolate the interior from the outside world, reflects an ideal of austere spirituality aligned with the religious thought of its time. Lighting should therefore concentrate primarily on the interior and the belfry, barely illuminating the external structure, so as to highlight the origin of the sound (in a sense, the manifestation of the “Word”). In Romanesque architecture, light indicates a direction to follow and, like a lighthouse, leads the faithful through darkness.

The transition to the Gothic (whose slender towers and arches, in a fusion between interior and exterior, dematerialize the stone) introduces a new light, brilliant and full of colour. It seems like a reference to the Heavenly Jerusalem. In this new airy, luminous atmosphere, lighting should emphasise above all the bell tower’s roof and, through a composition of different luminances, bring out the technical innovations such as spires, flying buttresses, pointed arches, and buttresses. These bell towers, which best embody the verticality of the sacred building, must become a triumph of light. Gothic is the period in which society begins to secularise, and the light that descends from above invites humanity to look upward and engage in a dialogue with God.

The Baroque period is marked by the dramatic contrast between the Catholic Church and the Protestant Reformation. The Church seeks to reaffirm its centrality and prestige even through the splendour of the architecture and art it sponsors. Baroque architecture absorbs new Luminist instances (Caravaggio being a notable example) where shadow is not a marginal backdrop but, together with light, shapes, carves space. The lighting of bell towers and belfries, while maintaining illumination across the structure, must enhance these dramatic plays of light and shadow.

The contemporary bell tower should be approached differently: here the light must be adapted from time to time according to its architectural structure and in dialogue with the intentions of the diocese.

A separate discourse applies to the civic bell tower which, outside a religious context, is a symbol of belonging to a civic community and a tool for scanning, through the clock, the time of work activities.

Lighting verticality

To illuminate the verticality of bell towers and belfries means emphasising the highest point of the structure. The vertical surfaces can be lit in two ways: by integrating luminaires directly on the tower or by placing them externally, on the cornices and façades of nearby buildings, on special poles, or on existing lamp posts. 

In the first case, lighting should be predominantly zenithal, using projectors with relatively narrow beams. Narrow-beam projectors cast light further than wider-beam fixtures, preventing the need for multiple luminaires on different levels, which would fragment the verticality and increase the risk of glare. This solution is also ideal for highlighting architectural and artistic details through plays of luminance.

In the second case the lighting gives an effect more uniform but requires a greater number of projectors. The beam angles should be chosen to avoid light spilling beyond the tower. The result is a soft, even glow.

Downward-facing illumination, if not carefully shielded and calibrated, may cause glare. For this reason, besides using beam-control accessories, beams should generally be kept as narrow as possible.

Special attention must be given to the mounting systems of the luminaires, particularly near the belfry or drum, where vibrations from the bells could alter the aiming of the projectors or weaken their supports.

Light pollution

Light pollution is a crucial aspect when illuminating a bell tower, that is those forms of artificial light radiation that are dispersed in the natural environment, especially towards the sky, where it disrupts the biorhythms of local flora and fauna. This effect is mainly caused by light reflected from illuminated surfaces or by insufficient shielding of the light source.

Lighting systems for bell towers must therefore ensure that illuminated surfaces do not exceed the minimum luminance levels set by national and local regulations. Ideally, these systems should also include automatic dimming controls that partially or completely switch off the lights during the central hours of the night, or reduce their output compared to full power. This also results in energy savings. The aspect that most negatively affects the natural environment is the entire light spectrum (not only the colour temperature).

Vincent van Gogh, The Starry Night, 1889. Oil on canvas. MoMA, New York, USA.

The spectrum should avoid wavelengths to which plants and animals are particularly sensitive, especially blue and red wavelengths. Considering environmental protection, the spectral composition of the light source should be chosen according to the materials of the bell tower, enhancing their colour and texture: for instance, warm light is preferable for brick bell towers, while cooler light highlights pale marble surfaces more effectively.