London Burns, for the Sake of Art

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The skyline of the British capital burst into flames Sunday night. Unlike when London burned in 1666, this was only an art project.

A 400-foot, scale replica of the city’s older skyline was incinerated on the Thames River as part of London’s Burning, a weekend-long festival marking the 350th anniversary of the Great Fire.

The 1666 fire broke out in a bakery, and, over the course of several days, it destroyed large swaths of the city center, consuming 13,000 buildings but resulting in surprisingly few deaths.

“London 1666,” the artwork that was set ablaze, was built of wood and designed by the American artist David Best, who is known for making giant structures meant to be set on fire.

London’s Burning was organized by Artichoke, a group that stages public art projects across Britain.

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