Library Project

On my library project I chose to make a library entry about London's Myths. A book that would be open for everyone in a library to handle and add their own myths and illustrations of the stories in it.

If the book were to be hypothetically placed in a library it would go through whoever would want to participate, this would involve a lot of handling of the book by different age groups, being that not everyone handles a book in the same way. So, to avoid damage, or more to incentive caring when handling, I made the book look visually fragile on purpose by giving an old look to it.

The library entry explains itself and comes with two myths surrounding two objects, The London Stone and The Battersea Shield.

Research:

  

The Battersea Shield:

It was discovered at the bottom of the river ames, probably near the Chelsea Suspension Bridge, along with other tools and coins which may have been o ered to the river at the time of Roman invasion to ask the gods for assistance.

Being actually a metal cover that would attach to a wooden shield, it mainly made of bronze with a length of 777 millimetres, 357 millimetres in width, 3400 grammes and decorated with 27 studs of opaque red enamel (durable coating made of melted and fused glass powder).

e item can be found at the British Museum while It’s replica is being exhibited at the London Museum. 

  

The London Stone

A very important landmark for London even tho it’s not very noticed or recognised by most.

As it’s name implies, it’s a chunk of oolitic limestone, a stone that can be dated back to, the Roman period where it served as a ‘milliarium’, the central milestone from which distances in the Roman province of Britain were measured and where past kings have sworn their oaths upon.

The myth bound to this stone made its first appearance in an article dating back to 1862, said by John Clark formerly Senior Curator, which referred to an ancient saying – ‘So long as the Stone of Brutus is safe, so long will London flourish’. As the stone as followed London through the Great Fire of 1666 and the bombing in the Second World War, and like London, it survived.

It’s location hasn’t always been the same, moving from the church of St Swithin, to the Guildhall Museum before 111 Cannon Street (named Candlewick Street in the past) was made which is where it’s next home was to be and safely exposed in the middle of the street before the year 1770 outside what is now the Rail Station.

The London Stone safely stands today at the London Museum awaiting it’s return to Cannon Street where it is to be installed in the new version of the office building in 111 Cannon street where it will have a more prominent standing, opposed to it’s most recent location in the same street and building.