Sherlock Holmes statue, London, Guide du visiteur et quoi faire à proximité

The Sherlock Holmes statue stands on Marylebone Road in London, beside Baker Street Underground station, and shows the fictional detective in his deerstalker with a pipe. It is a bronze tribute to Arthur Conan Doyle's famous character, set a short walk from the street where the stories put his home, and it makes a natural first stop on a Holmes trail through the city.

The story behind it

The statue is the work of sculptor John Doubleday and was unveiled in 1999. It gives Holmes the look most of us carry in our heads, yet that look took time to form. Conan Doyle's early notes called the detective Sherrinford, and the name Sherlock came later. In the stories he is described as tall and lean, always neatly dressed.

The deerstalker and pipe are not really Conan Doyle's invention. The hat in particular owes much to the illustrations by Sidney Paget that accompanied the stories, and later stage and screen versions fixed the image in place. Conan Doyle did relish his hero's eccentricities, though. In "The Musgrave Ritual" we learn that Holmes keeps his cigars in the coal-scuttle and his tobacco in the toe of a Persian slipper.

What to look for

• The deerstalker hat, which is the detail that tells you instantly who this is, even though the stories rarely describe it.
• The pipe and the thoughtful pose, which give the figure the air of a man in the middle of working something out.
• The setting beside the Underground station entrance, where commuters stream past a detective who never moves.
• The Holmes touches around Baker Street station, a good reminder of how closely this part of London is tied to the character.

Tips for your visit

• You only need ten to fifteen minutes at the statue itself, long enough for a photo and a look at the details.
• It is an outdoor statue on a public pavement, so there is nothing to go inside and no need to book.
• Go early in the morning for a clearer view, as the area around the station gets busy with commuters and visitors later in the day.
• Baker Street is close by and has other Holmes landmarks, so plan to keep walking. Check current opening hours if you want to visit any museum or shop nearby.

See it on a quest

The statue is one stop on Sherlock Holmes London: Crack the Case Walking Tour & Escape Game. You reach it on foot as part of a longer Holmes-themed route through the area, the app tells you about each place as you arrive, and you solve a puzzle on the spot using what is in front of you. It is a better way to see the statue than a quick photo, because you learn why it matters while standing there. It is a paid quest, and one ticket covers the whole group. You can start whenever you like, with no guide and no group to join.