The famous Big Ben, which rises above the British Parliament building in the middle of the day on Monday, hit the last time until 2021, announcing the beginning of silence, the longest in its history in 158 years.
It was decided to stop hammers ringing the bell weighing 13.7 tons at the head of each hour of each day to protect the workers in the maintenance of the clock and the tower (Elizabeth) over the Palace (Westminster).
"The maintenance and restoration work will save the clock for a long time to come and will keep the tower at 96 meters high," the House of Commons said, stressing that the clock will be punctuated on exceptional occasions such as the New Year celebrations.
A number of lawmakers, the general public and tourists are expected to gather in front of the building, which is a major tourist landmark, to listen to the last minutes while waiting to return to work four years later.
Big Ben has been operating continuously since its construction in 1859 and saw the first major repairs between 1983 and 1985, but the bell clock did not stop working until maintenance work took place in 2007.