Philpot Lane Mice Sculpture

On a small strip of no man’s land between two buildings on Philpot lane, a pair of tiny mice are gnawing at a piece of cheese. This is London’s tiniest public sculpture, and the origin of these little creatures remains a mystery. 

A plaque indicates that the buildings were constructed in 1861-62, as an office for spice merchants, but it is not known when the sculpted rodents appeared on the scene. The story behind the Philpot Lane Mice most often told is a tragic tale, albeit with little evidence to back it up. 

Local legend has it that the mice were created to mark the tragic death of two workers involved in the construction of the nearby Monument to the Great Fire of London. Two workers on this project were perched high in the air and took a break for lunch. One of the men noticed that his cheese sandwich had been nibbled at, leaving very little behind. He accused the friend next to him of eating the sandwich and the men got into a scuffle, which resulted in them falling to their deaths. It was, supposedly, later discovered that the food had been eaten by mice.

The theory is that the statues of the mice and cheese were added to remember these men, but this story has been debated and the timelines questioned. Yet, the curious animals are still there, chewing away at their tiny treat. The Lane is named after John Philpot, who was Lord Mayor of London from 1378 t0 1379