On Christmas Eve 1924 St Paul’s was served with a Dangerous Structures notice and was later closed for public safety.

This display in the Crypt of St Paul’s recounts the extraordinary and little-known story of how the Cathedral moved and cracked, causing masonry to fall and smash in the Nave, testing the limits of the structure and relations with the City of London building authorities.

Using archive material and objects from the Cathedral collections, the display takes the visitor from the problems inherent to the original design to the ingenious engineering endeavours that rendered the building safe once more. As structural issues emerged, many challenges did too, with conflicting advice from experts and major challenges fundraising to save the Dome. 

Remarkably, the Cathedral continued to operate throughout what was one of the most testing periods of its history. The display demonstrates how the interior of the building was radically reconfigured to allow services and ceremonies to take place safely, right up to the spectacular re-opening ceremony, attended by the King and Queen, in 1930.

This exhibition is included with Cathedral admission and can be found in the Crypt's North aisle.