London Monument to disppear into the guts of monstrous accordion

By Cory Doctorow at 6:53 am Friday, Nov 23

Christopher Wren's great fire Monument in the City of London is to be surrounded bulwarked by this bizarre, pleated accordion mirror-building which will leave only the tip of the Monument visible, serving as part of a giant sundial. Looks like none of the Monument will be visible from the street, though, which would mean that you'd need permission from whichever nameless developer owns the building in order to view it, photograph it, etc. I take it back -- on closer inspection, the Monument is in front of the building, not inside it

Architect Ken Shuttleworth has obtained planning permission for a building resembling an accordion which will fold around the City square where the Monument has stood since 1677.

There will be a roof garden that will form a giant sundial, with Wren's 202ft column acting as the gnomon, the pillar which creates a shadow on the dial, indicating the time across the landscaping.

Link (via Gizmodo)