Recent archaeological work and research at St Paul’s Cathedral

This article is a summary of archaeological work at St Paul’s Cathedral, that is the present building of 1675–1711 by Christopher Wren. The cathedral is now 300 years old and has gone through several periods of change to its fabric and surroundings. During the 18th and 19th centuries St Paul’s assumed more and more of the role of the nation’s church, which had been enjoyed by its medieval predecessor. The most important 19th-century change, during the long Surveyorship of Francis Penrose, was an opening up of the access and surroundings so that St Paul’s is now the iconic architectural centre of the City of London. From day to day, the cathedral poses management questions just like any other.