The facade of the Bank of England in the Cityt of London. Affectionately known as 'The Old Lady of Threadneedle Street', the Bank of England has been through several incarnations in its three-hundred year history. Now a large and imposing edifice sprawling over four acres of the City, the original bank opened for business in 1694 in the Mercers' Hall later moving on to the Grocers' Hall. Finally, in 1732, the present site was bought and work began on the buildings which form the back of the present court towards Threadneedle Street. Extended and rebuilt several times over the centuries, much of what is visible of the bank today owes its design to Sir John Soane. In fact, one of its most famous features, the stately colonnade which forms the North West or 'Tivoli' corner (pictured here), was based on the Temple of Vesta at Tivoli which the architect sketched in 1779..