The Friday Photos: Here Be Dragons

TimW
By TimW Last edited 137 months ago
The Friday Photos: Here Be Dragons
In Moorgate, by AnnA Jay
In Moorgate, by AnnA Jay
Storm clouds gather over the City of London, by Homemade
Storm clouds gather over the City of London, by Homemade
Image by by Prad Patel
Image by by Prad Patel
An amusing angle at Holborn Viaduct, by Tom Spender
An amusing angle at Holborn Viaduct, by Tom Spender
Hipstamatic Griffin at Temple Bar, by Stuart Sunley
Hipstamatic Griffin at Temple Bar, by Stuart Sunley
Image by roll the dice
Image by roll the dice
A riot of red and green, by Dave McGowan
A riot of red and green, by Dave McGowan
Silhouette, by Steve Reed
Silhouette, by Steve Reed
ALl white background, by Veronica Aguilar
ALl white background, by Veronica Aguilar

Londoners travelling in and out of the City every day have to pass the guardians of the square mile.

Dragons (or griffins, creatures with the body of a lion and head and wings of an eagle), each holding a shield bearing the City's coat-of-arms, stand at the south end of London Bridge, on High Holborn and at Moorgate among other places.

At Temple Bar meanwhile, there is a much more dramatic sculpture, by Victorian artist C B Birch (images 5 and 8, above), of a fiercer griffin with its wings flared.

In classical mythology, the historian Peter Ackroyd has noted, the griffin guarded gold and treasure, so the presence of these creatures at the gates of the City is apposite.

Images from the Londonist Flickr pool: Tom Spender, Veronica Aguilar, Steve Reed, Prad Patel, Stuart Sunley, Anna Jay, Homemade, Dave McGowan and roll the dice.

Did you see the great little videos about the City of London and to become Lord Mayor of London?

Last Updated 05 October 2012