The Sheldonian Theatre

The Sheldonian Theatre is marked by a semicircular projection on its northern wall that presses directly against the sidewalk of Broad Street, a shape often compared to the stern of a ship. Built between sixteen sixty-four and sixteen sixty-nine, this was the first major architectural commission for Christopher Wren, who was then a professor of astronomy at Oxford. It was commissioned by Archbishop Gilbert Sheldon to provide a dedicated space for university graduation ceremonies, which had previously been held in the University Church of St Mary the Virgin, where they were considered disruptive to religious worship.