Big Ben is actually the name of the thirteen ton bell, which rings the hours and not the name of the clock tower located in Westminster (London, England) at the northern most end of the Parliament House. This tower is often officially referred as the Clock Tower at the Palace of Westminster. But locally, many people, who live in London, prefer to call this clock tower as “Big Ben”.
One of the best known landmarks of London, Big Ben, got its name from Sir Benjamin Hall. The clock became operational on September 7, 1859. Big Ben is also considered to be the world’s largest chiming clock that is four faced. The weight of the clock alone is more than 5 tons. The minute spaces of the clock are one foot long while the figures on the Big Ben face are more than 2 feet long. This famous clock was completed in 1856 and it took around thirteen years to construct this memorable clock. The height of the tower is 316 feet.
The dials and the clock were designed by Augustus Pugin. The faces of the clock are set on a massive iron frame, which is 23 feet in diameter and supports nearly 312 pieces of opal glass just as a stained glass window. The dials including its surroundings has been heavily gilded.
Big Ben has become a visual media symbol of London and the United Kingdom after it was polled as the “Most Iconic London Film Location”. It becomes the focus of the celebrations of New Year in the United Kingdom. This Clock Tower has been frequently used in shooting of films including Shanghai Knights and The Great Mouse Detective.
Nowadays with the name “Big Ben”, people more often think of the tower rather than the bell. Still, what matters to all is that it is amongst the most visited places in the world.
