A view of coming up from the underground (middle). The name, "Big Ben" is almost universally used to describe the clock tower as a whole. However, officially, "Big Ben" refers specifically to the prinicpal bell within the tower. The construction of the clock tower started the year Queen Victoria was crowned (1837) where the original clock tower built in the 14th c used to stand. The clock became fully operational on September 7, 1859. Each of the four vast clock faces is 23 feet (7 m) in diameter and the figures are 2 feet (0.6 m) long. A light shines in the top of the clock tower when either the House of Commons or the House of Lords is in session.
The bell (The Great Bell of Westminster) weighs 13.762 t, with a striking hammer weighing 203 kg, and was originally tuned to E.
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