wes fowler

Excluding items in museums, religious buildings, castles and palaces, what is the oldest object in London and where can one view it?

Al

I recall seeing pieces of Roman walls unearthed when they were doing some digging around the Barbican Development.

janis

I am sure there must be something older - but there is another extensive piece of the Roman wall outside the Tower Hill tube station.

wes fowler

The Roman walls were built between 195AD and 220AD or so. Many of the walls were subsequently rebuilt in later years to fend off Saxon and Norse sieges.The oldest item I'm thinking of predates the walls.

MaryC

Wes<BR>Is it the Great North Road (also known as the A1) that leads from London to Edinburgh? It's an old Roman road and would predate the walls.

Jacob

I suppose one might catch a glimpse of the Queen Mum on occasion coming or going from Buckingham Palace. Barring that, I'd have to go with the crisps at a little pub near the Tate Gallery.

MaryC

Jacob<BR><BR>LOL! HILarious.

wes fowler

Jacob, you've made my day! That's a priceless response, though believe it or not there's something older than the Queen Mum. <BR><BR>Mary,while the Great Northern Road, now A1, still exists, it wouldn't be recognizable as such to any reincarnated Roman. Although once touched by a sword, this object sustained no damage and looks just as it did when first put into use. <BR><BR> <BR><BR>

Malena

Perhaps the remaining ruins of a temple to Mithras located in the middle of town?

BP

Actually, the oldest monument thingy in London is Cleopatra's Needle (on the banks of the Thames) - genuine Egyptian monolith......<BR><BR>And just a few years older than the QM...<BR><BR>RBP

David White

Wes,<BR><BR>I'd guess Cleopatra's Needle too, but it is an IMPORTED item. For indigenous monuments, I'd have to guess that the London Stone (on Cannon Street) may be the oldest intact object.<BR><BR>Dave White

David White

P.S.<BR><BR>....not that the Queen Mum isn't "intact" and "indigenous"

wes fowler

Cleopatra's Needle on the Thames Embankment dates from about 1450BC and is the oldest monument in London. Its twin is in Paris' Place de la Concorde. In posing the question however I was really thinking in terms of the oldest indigenous object in London.<BR><BR>It seems that the area around Cannon Street is one of the oldest in London with evidence of pre-Roman occupation. At the triangular intersection of Cannon, Queen Victoria and Walbrook, there are the ruins of the Temple of Mithras, unearthed and partially restored in conjunction with the construction of Bucklersbury House. The temple dates from about 200 AD contemporary with the Roman walls.<BR><BR>The London Stone, now displayed in a niche on an outer wall of a Chinese bank opposite the Cannon Street tube station is probably the oldest monument in London. Some say that it was a Roman mile marker. Christopher Wren, the master architect of much of London, claimed that its shape suggested a different purpose, one that pre-dated the Roman occupation. On that premise, I think it can be called London's oldest object pending further investigation into the chips offered by the pub near the Tate that Jacob refers to.

MaryC

Great informative thread, Wes. Thanks for taking our minds off of some of the "children" around here. Happy New Year (belated though it may be).<BR><BR>~MaryC : )