Tom Tower of Christ Church

The college of Christ Church here at Oxford is world-famous for many reasons. Its cathedral, home to the diocese of Oxford, is absolutely stunning. Its grounds serve as the setting for Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Harry Potter and his wizarding friends ate magically-delicious meals in its dining hall. However, one of Christ Church's most striking features is the one you can see (and hear) from miles away: Tom Tower.

Tom Tower

The tower, named after its bell 'Great Tom,' was built in the late 17th century and serves as the main entrance to Christ Church off of St. Aldate's. Tom Tower has quite an interesting history, and, as you might expect, it comes with a rich Oxonian tradition.

"Okay, great," you say. "But, why are devoting a whole post to this one tower?"

I am glad you asked, my friend. Tom Tower has special significance to me, and I suspect to a good number of my college friends, because it inspired the tower of our beloved Dunster House at Harvard.

Dunster House

Can you see the resemblance? The tower at Dunster is obviously much smaller and the details have been 'Georgianized,' but the similarities are there. (Also, some stones from Christ Church were incorporated into Dunster's architecture during its construction, although I'm not sure exactly where. I have a vague memory of them being in J entryway, near the dining hall. Does anyone know?)

Not much storytelling or deep insight for today. I just wanted to contribute a brief post to remind you all that I'm still in England. But, to conclude, Dunster is the best house. And Oxford is awesome, too.

My beautiful former home.

Hope all is well!
Alyce