Carfax Tower
The 23-metre Saxon-medieval tower at the centre of Oxford — climb 99 steps for a four-way panorama.
Carfax is the geographic centre of Oxford — the four streets (Cornmarket, Queen, St Aldate's, High) all meet here. Climbing is short (99 steps) but the city's no-tall-buildings rule means the view is genuinely all of central Oxford. Listen for the quarterboys striking the bells on the east face.
Carfax Tower is the only surviving part of the 12th-century church of St Martin, which once stood at the dead centre of Oxford. The church itself was demolished in 1896 to widen the road; the tower was preserved by public outcry and remains the highest viewpoint in the centre of the city open to the public.
The name "Carfax" derives from the Latin quadrifurcus (four-forked) via Old French carrefourgs, reflecting the junction of four streets that meet here: Cornmarket Street, Queen Street, St Aldate's, and the High Street. By long Oxford tradition no building in the centre of the city may exceed the height of Carfax Tower (74 feet), which is why the city's skyline retains its distinctive low, college-dominated profile.
Above the clock face on the east side, the two figures known as the Quarterboys strike the bells on the quarter hour. The interior is a tight spiral staircase of 99 steps to a small observation platform at the top.
Nearby
Within a few minutes' walk
