Bart's, as the hospital is known, has existed since 1123,
when Henry I's courtier Rahere founded both the hospital and nearby St.
Bartholomew the Great. The tiny museum
tells how William Harvey discovered circulation of the blood here in the
17th century. On the Grand Staircase hang two huge Hogarths (who was
born in nearby Bartholomew Close); for a close-up, you'll have to go on
the tour. Also in the hospital grounds is St.
Bartholomew-the-Less, mostly an 1820s restoration but with a
15th-century tower. The church also memorializes four martyrs who burned
heroically in the 16th century just a few feet away. (West Smithfield. Tube: Barbican, Farringdon, or St. Paul's. Open Tu-F 10am-4pm.Tours including Smithfield
area F 2pm; £4, concs. £3.
Free.)
