Royal Courts of Justice

Perhaps pushing the boundaries of what can be called a public clock, I have included some pictures taken at the Royal Courts of Justice in The Strand, London, during last weekend's Open House London (see www.openhouselondon.org.uk).

The building is by the architect George Edmund Street, and is in the Victorian Gothic Revival style. The Great Hall is cathedral-like in both its size (70 m long, 15 m wide and 25 m high), and makes the substantial clock at its northern end seem lost.

There are numerous other clocks around the building, including a standard design in each of the many courtrooms (where photography is banned). The clock below is on one of the upper corridors surrounding the Great Hall.

The above two clocks are both by Gillett & Co of Croydon. The company was established in 1844, although only became known this name in 1884. Subsequently the company has become Gillett & Johnston and is still in existence, although it moved out of Croydon this year. Further details are on the company's website at www.gillettjohnson.co.uk.

The following clocks are in the more ornately decorate parts of the building, nesting amongst the fine wallpapers and polished marble......

 

...or between portraits of the great and good in the legal world.