BIG BEN
FACE WASHING TAKES WEEK
(By Air Mail, from "Ttie Post's" London
Representative.)
LONDON, October 31
Big Ben had four faces washed before Parliament opened. This seasonal operation takes a week, for each dial contains 400 square feet of glass. Though the glass is set in a framework of cast iron, the pressure of the wind sometimes causes a distinct inward bulge.
Most people are unaware that they can get permission to climb the 300 steps of the clock tower to view Big Ben at close quarters. This privilege is obtained either through the local member of Parliament or through the Office of Works. There is a rule that no one is allowed up the tower while the House it sitting, so that except during Recess the only day is Saturday.
An official in the architect's office at the House of Commons takes parties of people to the top every Saturday during the summer. The view from the open ironwork of the lantern is superb, but the clock chamber alone is worth the climb.
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https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19381206.2.86
Bibliographic details
Evening Post, Volume CXXVI, Issue 136, 6 December 1938, Page 11
Word Count
175BIG BEN Evening Post, Volume CXXVI, Issue 136, 6 December 1938, Page 11
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