Photo: londondrum.comUseful things to know before your visit
Address: London Stone, Cannon Street (opposite Cannon Street station), The City
How much time do you need?
A typical visit to London Stone takes 2 minutes.
Which buses go to London Stone?
Bus routes 15, 17 and 521 all stop close by.
Which is the closest train station?
The nearest station is Cannon Street, which connects with the Circle and District lines. It also serves National Rail trains. It only takes a minute to walk to London Stone.
Which other attractions are nearby?
These attractions are all within 15 minutes walk of London Stone: London Mithraeum, Mansion House, Royal Exchange, Bank of England Museum, The Monument, Sky Garden, Leadenhall Market, Guildhall Art Gallery, Guildhall, One New Change, Billingsgate Roman House & Baths, Clink Prison Museum, Golden Hinde, Horizon 22 and Globe Theatre.
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This thing is akin to the Arkenstone. It’s the heart of the country, the dried-up centre of the city, the fossilised pip of whatever tree stood here first. Nobody knows for sure where it came from. Some people believe that it’s Roman, some people think it’s medieval, whilst others will tell you it’s the stone from which Arthur pulled Excalibur.
All they really know for sure is that it’s incredibly old, and it’s this age that gave it a mythical status in the City. People used to come and touch it to seal a deal (a bit like swearing an oath on the Bible). Jack Cade was supposed to have hit it with his sword when he rebelled against Henry VI. By the time of Elizabeth I it had become so famous that Shakespeare even mentioned it in one of his plays.
Limestone block from Roman times
The experts’ best guess is that it was originally part of a gateway into the governor’s palace when London was still ruled by Rome. It was probably a big block of rock that stood about head height and it has been slowly eroding down over the centuries.
In 1578 a visiting dignitary measured it at three feet. Ninety years later the Great Fire of London swept along Candlewick Street (modern day Cannon Street) and cracked it in half. What remained was placed outside Christopher Wren’s long-gone St. Swithin’s church.
Location in Cannon Street
More ferocious fire and flames followed in 1940 when the Luftwaffe dropped a bomb on the church roof, levelling everything except the stone’s home in the western wall. It was then carried across to the other side of the street and imprisoned inside a grill outside WH Smith’s. When that building was itself torn down the stone found temporary respite at the Museum of London before a new tomb was built for it opposite Cannon Street station.
And that’s where you’ll find it today, a little bit smaller than it used to be, but still sitting in the same street it’s been for two thousand years, from where it’s witnessed the Blitz, the Great Fire of London, the Peasants’ Revolt, and even the fall of the Rome.
I’ve ranked the London Stone as ★10 in London’s best historic places to visit
London Squire guidebook – Check out my guidebook available to buy at Amazon, Apple and Kobo. I’ve personally visited 210 London landmarks, attractions and hotels and collected all of my reviews, example itineraries, handy practical info, and advice about using the buses and trains into an eBook, along with 675 original photos
What do you think? (2)
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graham Is the London Stone still there? (reply)
Craig Hi Graham, it’s still there. It has moved about quite a bit in recent years, from outside WH Smiths (gone now) to the Museum of London, and back to Cannon Street again. But it looks like it has a permanent home now. (reply)
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