Even the most studied Londonist will struggle with the following quiz, printed in the Daily Herald, 24 May 1951.
The eight-question challenge coincided with the publication of 'In Search of London' by HV Morton. "Anybody who thinks he knows London," said the Herald in the gender-specific language of the time, "can test himself by this short quiz, picked at random from Morton's book".
Having written several books about London myself, plus thousands of articles and dozens of quizzes, I thought I'd give it a go. My grand total? Three out of eight. See if you can fare better. Answers with commentary below...
1. Which is the only famous London building with a Greek inscription over its door?
2. Where is Shakespeare's youngest brother buried?
3. How old is Cleopatra's Needle?
4. Where is the skeleton of Napoleon's famous charger, Marengo?
5. Where can you see the official imperial measures from an inch to 100 feet?
6. Who carved the statue of Nelson on his column?
7. When do Chelsea Pensioners wear red, and when blue frock-coats?
8. Where was the Zoo before it moved to Regent's Park?
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Answers
1. Bank of England. Not off to a good start. I can find no sign of a Greek inscription around the Bank, nor a reference online. Presumably it has now vanished. The earlier Bank building by Sir John Soane was much more Greek in appearance, but it was largely swept away in the 20s and 30s, long before this quiz.
2. Southwark Cathedral. I knew this one. Edmund Shakespeare died aged just 27 and was buried in St Saviour's, now the cathedral. His much more famous elder brother is remembered with an alabaster statue inside the church, a stained glass window and, more recently, a metal sculpture in the churchyard.
3. More than 3,500 years. Bit of a vague question and answer. It is now thought to have been erected around 1450 BC, making it a tiny bit less than 3,500 years. The more interesting fact was that the obelisk was already around 1,400 years old when Cleopatra came to power.
4. Royal United Service Museum. Not an attraction on most tourists' itineraries, on account of it closing in 1962. As Vic Keegan notes, though, this was once one of the biggest museums in the UK, telling the story Britain's various military campaigns. It was housed in a wing of the Banqueting House, where the Royal United Service Institute is still based. As for Marengo, the skeletal horse can now be seen in the National Army Museum in Chelsea, and I happen to have taken a portrait:
5. On brass strips let into National Gallery side of Trafalgar Square. These are still in situ three quarters of a century later.
6. Edward Hodges Baily. Not exactly a household name, despite this important commission. His other works include the golden statue on the Athenaeum club, and some of the sculpture on Marble Arch.
7. Blue in winter, red in summer; they change on Oak Apple Day, May 29th. You can read more about the pensioners and their uniforms at their recently opened museum.
8. Tower of London until 1834. A well-known fact, now celebrated at the Tower with a series of wire sculptures of animals.
