You wait a couple of millennia for ancient remains to be recalled to life, then two instances come along at once. Only last Friday we reported on plans to move the sorry-looking Temple of Mithras back to its rightful home. And now the BBC are declaring a brighter future for London Stone (one of those strange entities that inexplicably shuns the definite article. See also Magna Carta, Carnival and, erm, Londonist).
You may not have seen or even heard of London Stone, yet in a consensus of parallel universes, the clump of rock would be one of the main tourist attractions of our city. By tradition, it represents the centre of London, the place where deals are made and challenges issued. Sadly, in our universe, the limestone relic is almost forgotten. For decades it has sat in a poorly lit alcove in an anonymous building on Cannon Street, for all the world to ignore. Who would believe that this sedentary bit of sedimentary has been revered for centuries, perhaps stretching back to the Romans or even the Trojans?
Well, good news. Its current home is about to be demolished in favour of a modern development that would, at last, put the stone back in pride of place. Meanwhile, it’ll be kept in the Museum of London till its new home is ready. And they better keep a good eye on it.
Protecting the stone might not be such a bad idea - since there is a legend that, like the ravens at the Tower of London, the fortune of the city is tied to the survival of the stone.
Well there’s a terrorist target if ever we saw one.
