Big Ben is the name of the huge clock on the Clock Tower of the Houses of Parliament. One can get a good view of the Tower from Westminster Bridge. The Clock Tower is 313 feet high and 41 feet square. The present clock was made by Mr. Dent. It first came into service in 1859, and, except for a few stoppages, it has run continuously ever since.
When the great bell was cast in a London foundry in 1858, the question of its name was discussed in Parliament. One member said, “Why not call it Big Ben?” There was much laughter among the members because the Chief Commissioner of Works at that time was Sir Benjamin Hall, a very tall stout man, whose nickname was 'Big Ben’. From that time, the bell has been known as Big Ben.
The Clock has four dials each 22 feet in diameter. The Bell weighs 13.5 tons. It has four little Bens round him. Big Ben strikes only once an hour but the other four tell the quarters and the half hours. At the side of Big Ben there is a huge hammer weighing over 200 kilograms. The faces of the clock are very large. The minute hands are 14 feet long, the hour hands 9 feet, and the figures are 2 feet long.
People are allowed to get inside the tower if they wish to see the work of Big Ben. There is no lift in the Tower and there are three hundred and forty steps up to Big Ben.
Above the clock is an iron lantern, which is lit after sunset when the House is sitting.
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