Photograph of the interior of St Paul's Cathedral taken from the nave and looking towards the east, with the base of the dome visible in the middle ground. Chairs are erected in the background and two men stand on the left, against a pillar in the foreground.

The old cathedral of St Paul's was demolished during the 1670's following damage that it had received by the Great fire of London in 1666. Sir Christopher Wren was commissioned by the Archbishop of Canterbury to re-design the building which was declared officially open on Christmas Day 1711. Wren drew inspiration for the design of the cathedral dome from St Peter's Basilica which he had visited in Rome.