London's Smallest Public Sculptures

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London’s Smallest Public Sculptures

One of the greatest thrills of being a tour guide is knowing that you’re walking past something that 90% of Londoners have never noticed before.

These are the eight smallest public sculptures you can find in London. Some are (relatively) famous but I’m hoping that one or two might inspire you to hunt them down yourself!

My criteria for this entirely personal list was that they must be:

Three dimensional (otherwise I would’ve included Ben Wilson’s Chewing Gum and certain fun mosaic pieces)
Created as an artwork (not a functional symbol or plaque)
Standalone (not part of the decoration of a building)

Got any others to add? I would love to hear about them!

1. Philpot Lane Mice

The most famous on the list is – of course – the Philpot Lane Mice, a beloved detail that even features on The Knowledge exam for Black Cab Drivers (at least that’s what quite a few cabbie friends have told me!)

Look up on Philpot Lane and you can spot three blobs, two brown and one yellow in the middle.

With a decent zoom you can make out two mice sharing a piece of cheese.

The provenance of this one is shakey to say the least. But the story goes that when 13 Philpot Lane was being constructed (it was built 1862) two workers started fighting. The cause of the heated dispute was a lost cheese sandwich and things take a disastrous turn when one of the men pushes the other off the building, causing him to tumble to his death.

It turns out that the other man hadn’t stolen it at all but a mouse had swiped the sandwich which was found later thoroughly nibbled. To commemorate this sorry story apparently the mice sculpture was added as a memorial (and a good reminder that sharing is caring).

The mice certainly are small. But are they really the smallest sculptures in London? I reckon some on the list are smaller…

2. Mayfair’s Mouse House

Continuing the mouse theme we have what’s actually quite a large sculpture on Davies Street, Mayfair.

However because it’s directly on the ground it’s very easy to miss.

The story behind this one relates to Hedonism Wines, the emporium established on Davies Street in 2012.

What I was told by a lovely staff member inside was when they opened they took over no.s 3 and 7, the owner curious as to why there had never been a number 5 Davies Street.

They decided to create a mini number 5 in the form of a tiny mouse hole in the middle of the shop front which was in place until 2014 (judging from Google Street View images).

But since the business has expanded the mouse hole has also had an upgrade, now a palatial mouse-mansion complete with a bronze, whiskered resident enjoying a glass of wine on a deck chair!

3. Soho Noses

Another ‘famous’ little London detail are the curious nasal sculptures dotted around the West End.

These have also been the subject of much myth-making but the truth is that they’re the work of Rick Buckley, an artist who erected 35 casts of his own nose across London in 1997.

The true story behind the noses was only revealed in 2012 when Buckley was interviewed by the Evening Standard.

Today only five of the original ‘Soho noses’ still exist and I’ve included them all on the map of all these sculptures at the end of the post.

4. Marchmont Street Tokens

Embedded into the pavement on Marchmont Street are a curious selection of odd objects.

The story behind them actually incredibly poignant and relates to London’s first orphanage, The Foundling Hospital.

Today it’s a museum but the Foundling Hospital opened in 1739, established by Thomas Coram in Bloomsbury. It was intended to provide a safe place for babies and children whose parents couldn’t look after them. For over 200 years the Hospital took in around 27,000 children.

During the mid 18th century it was common for mothers to also leave a token, something small but unique, which could help identify the child should they ever be in a position to reclaim them.

Today the Foundling Museum has over 400 tokens in their collection, each one signifying a child never reunited with its mother.

In 2006 John Aldous was commissioned to create a public sculpture related to the local history of Marchmont Street and – like man others – was so moved by the story of the tokens that he chose them as his inspiration.

Each of the sculpture in the pavement slabs of Marchmont Street are inspired by a real 18th century token that can be seen inside the Foundling Museum today.

5. The Abandoned Mitten

Outside the Foundling Museum there’s another moving artwork that helps captures the history of the work of the hospital.

‘Baby Things’ – a tiny bronze mitten – was made by Tracey Emin in 2008 and The Foundling Hospital acquired the sculpture in 2010.

Today it’s easy to miss on the railings beside the statue of Thomas Coram but it stands as a heartbreaking reminder of the struggles faced by desperate parents and the story of the Foundling Hospital.

6. The Golden Square Stolperstein

Another tragic but important tiny sculpture can be found in Soho’s Golden Square.

It is a stumbling stone or ’stolperstein’ which commemorates someone murdered by the Nazis between 1933-1945. These are sadly a very common across Europe and can be found in 31 countries with over 116,000 people commemorated. You can read more about the project here.

The only London stone remembers Ada Van Danzig who worked in painting restoration at 2-3 Golden Square in the 1930s.

Concerned for her family back in Rotterdam, she travelled home in 1939 but was captured with her family and sent to Auschwitz. She was murdered alongside her mother and sister on 14 February 1943. You can read more about Ada (known as Anna) here.

7. The Wee Tiny Gallery

On a much happier note, in Spitalfields you can find London’s Tiniest Art Gallery.

Only the size of a brick, ironically you can find this installation on the corner of Brick Lane and Princelet Street where it was only unveiled in April 2026.

It was designed by the Utah-based Mckay Lender Bayer who runs Tiny Art Show, specialising in fascinating and whimsical miniature artworks.

This particular project was made in collaboration with London-based illustrator and printmaker Holly Welch.

8 Jonsey Sculptures

Continuing the street art theme we have the wonderful work of Jonesy whose bronze sculptures reward anyone staying curious and looking up around London.