Marble Arch is the gleaming white triumphal arch that stands at the north-east corner of Hyde Park, where Oxford Street meets Park Lane and the Edgware Road. Designed by John Nash in the 1820s and modelled on the Arch of Constantine in Rome, it was originally a gateway to Buckingham Palace before being moved to its present spot.
Why see it
It is one of the West End's great orientation points, marking the meeting of shopping, parkland and grand avenues. The arch anchors a corner rich in history, close to the site of the Tyburn gallows and the soapbox tradition of Speakers' Corner.
What to see nearby
Speakers' Corner, the historic home of free public debate, sits just inside Hyde Park alongside the arch. The shops of Oxford Street, Selfridges, Frameless and the Moco Museum are all within a few minutes' walk.
Visiting tips
Marble Arch has its own Central line Tube station. It is best appreciated in passing rather than as a destination in itself, easily folded into a day around Hyde Park and Oxford Street.
