The Monument to the Great Fire of London

This Doric column near London Bridge commemorates the Great Fire of 1666 and the reconstruction of the city that followed. Designed by Christopher Wren and Robert Hooke and completed in 1677, it stands exactly its own height from the spot in Pudding Lane where the fire began, topped by a gilded urn of flames. A tight spiral staircase of three hundred and eleven steps climbs to a viewing platform, later caged for safety. The structure also doubled as an instrument for scientific experiments.