A scrap of parchment almost 1,000 years old will go on rare public display this month, to celebrate the long history of the City of London’s archives.
The document, the oldest object in the archives, is a scrap of a charter given by William the Conqueror in 1067, the year after the Norman conquest, confirming the legal rights of the citizens of London.
It will go on display in an exhibition at Guildhall art gallery from 7 January until April.
It will launch a year of displays and events celebrating the history of the archives, which hold some 3m files, covering London and Londoners from the Normans to the present day. Geoff Pick, director of the archives, said they were arguably the best of any city in the world.
