In 1638, Charles I gave permission for a market to be created at what was then Spittle Fields. Through the centuries, the market has changed and evolved and now it finds itself in a plaza area bounded by restored Victorian buildings and a modern office complex. It has developed into one of London’s most popular markets.
Old Spitalfields Market
Copyright L Debnam 2013
The market is open 7 days a week and you can find both established shops in the buildings surrounding the covered market, which is packed with a huge variety of stalls. As with any market, there is the usual cheap dross, but there are also many funky stalls offering vintage, reworked and original fashion, jewellery, accessories, delicious food and a few unusual stalls with wares of days gone by, such as vintage cameras and printing press letters.
Metal letters used in printing presses.
Copyright L Debnam 2013
We went on a Sunday for lunch and it was packed. There is a large range of food available, from sit down restaurants/cafes, to market stalls offering tantalising goodies. We chose to try out a Square Pie. I can recommend the Beef and Guinness pie – smothered in gravy! Yum!
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Beef and Guinness Pie. Ask for the gravy!
Copyright L Debnam 2013
There are many other great food stalls offering delicious goods and there are tables that you can sit at to eat take away food at. I would also recommend the chocolate brownies and Portuguese Custard Tarts!
Food glorious food at Spitalfields Market.
Copyright L Debnam 2013
Nearby you will find other markets such as the Petticoat Lane Market. This is where you go to find super cheap clothes most probably made by wage slaves in third world countries. Prices start at one pound which says it all. Old Spitalfields offers special days such as the upcoming Art Market 1-4 August 2013 and the Saturday Style Market in which up and coming artists and designers offer their work for sale.
The Markets are in the Tower Hamlet area of London and are easily accessed via the Tube. Get off at Aldgate East and look for the Commercial Road exit. We walked past the Ibis Hotel to head in the right direction, which will take you past Petticoat Lane. It’s well worth a day out if you are looking for something different to the standard fare offered by the chain stores.
And a last word on the goat sculpture standing on packing boxes outside the market. I wondered what it referred to – was it the original market established by Charles I? Was it some famous goat that did something remarkable? No, here is the statement from the Spitalfields Art website on the publicly voted winner:
“The winning design of the Spitalfields Sculpture Prize 2010, Kenny Hunter’s hand-sculpted goat stands atop a stack of packing crates to create the 3.5 metre high Goat, which was inspired by Spitalfields’ rich, ongoing social history.
Spitalfields Goat Sculpture
Copyright L Debnam 2013
“Goats are associated with non-conformity and being independently-minded. That is also true of London, its people and never more so than in Spitalfields.” said artist Kenny Hunter at the official unveiling on 20 January 2011.”
Or was it inspired by this event, established five years ago by some of those non-conforming, independently minded Londoners he refers to? Fabulous stuff!
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