Bust: Victoria roundel
Victoria D.G. Britt. Reg. MDCCCLXXIX
The unabbreviated text would read in Latin: "Victoria dei gratia Britanniarum Regina", which translates as: "Victoria, by the Grace of God, of the Britains Queen, 1879". 1879 was the year in which Victoria celebrated her 60th birthday. But looking at the whole roundel, it is extremely similar to the design of pennies in the latter part of Victoria's reign. However we can't explain what it is doing on this building. We've seen more attractive representations of the old dear. And why is that fishy looking creature going for her jugular?
Site: Victoria roundel (1 memorial)
EC2, London Wall, 66
On each of the four floors of this building are roundels containing reliefs of women's heads, labelled, from the top: America (Native American feathered headdress with stars on the headband), Africa (Egyptian style headdress in the form of a peacock), Asia (headscarf and jewellery in ears and nose), Europe (flowing locks and a rather dull crown) and on the ground floor, Victoria.
Searching for information on this building we came across an interesting site, Distant Writing where we learn that in 1857 Waterlow & Sons, a large firm of law stationers, letterpress and lithographic printers with government contracts, installed the first commercial private telegraph line connecting this address with their offices in Birchin Lane. Waterlow's first occupied this London Wall address in 1845 but we are not certain that the current building is the one that would have been there then, so we are no closer to understanding the decorations on the building.
