Romans, cheesemongers, bankers
700 years after the first mention of a market on this spot, Leadenhall Market seems out of place among the bank towers and right next to the high-tech Lloyds Building. It is a magnificent piece of 19th century ostentation by Sir Horace Jones, architect and surveyor to the City of London, who designed Smithfield meat market, Billingsgate fish market and Tower Bridge.
The architecture of Leadenhall Market is full of sumptuous detail. At its main entrance is a stone pediment with urns and scrolls, dragons flanking a fine clock, and the motto of the City of London: »Domine dirige nos«, »Guide us, Lord«. Inside, a high roof of cast iron and glass covers two main arcades and passages leading from them where market stalls are still set up on weekdays. The walls of the permanent shops are painted in Burgundy red and cream, while the plasterwork between the windows depicts orange trees growing in pots. The iron construction with its fluted columns, garlands in Ionic capitals and silver dragons breathing fire from every corner is an exuberant demonstration of Victorian abhorrence of the purely functional.
Info
Address Gracechurch Street, EC3V 1LR | Public Transport Monument (Circle, District Line) | Hours Mon–Fri 10am–6pm; the hours of individual shops and restaurants in the market vary | Tip To shop and eat more cheaply than in the finance district, head east for ten minutes along Leadenhall Street and Aldgate to Whitechapel High Street.
The market had more modest origins, of course. By the year 1321, poultry traders were meeting around a dwelling called Leadenhall – the name probably indicates that this building had an expensive roof. They were soon joined by cheesemongers, and Leadenhall evolved into a place where wool, leather goods, cutlery, meat and vegetables were sold. Following the Great Fire of 1666, the market was given a roof for the first time, and in 1881 the present market replaced the old structures. Commercial activity has been going on here for even longer than the recorded history of the market: in Roman times, this was the site of the forum and the basilica, a large hall used for courts of law, assemblies and trading. Today, the shoppers here are mainly employed in the finance business.
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