The Whittington Stone, a memorial erected in 1821, stands in Archway, near Highgate Hill. This stone commemorates Richard Whittington, a 14th-century merchant and City official who served as Lord Mayor of London three or four times. Inscriptions on the stone detail Whittington's career and his return to London, where he heard the bells of St Mary-le-Bow ringing - the moment the story of Dick Whittington unfolds. The stone is crowned with a 1964 sculpture of a cat by Jonathan Kenworthy.
The stone's structure is Portland stone, and the inscription on its south-west side is mostly eroded. The inscription on its north-east side recounts Whittington's career and his multiple terms as Lord Mayor, and marks the site where he heard the bells. After restoration in 1935, the stone's railings were added. The stone and railings were given statutory protection in 1972, and the stone's location was reclassified decades after the nearby arched bridge was built in the early 19th century.
Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons
Written by Nicolo Ciampini
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