Clerkenwell Road leads downhill to a
street called Hatton Garden and the heart of London's jewellery trade. There are
over 30 jewellery retail shops plus over 300 related businesses, and although
this has been the preferred location since the Middle Ages, real expansion took
place during the 19th century with the influx of diamonds from the newly
explored territories of South Africa. Parallel to Hatton Garden is Leather Lane
where there is a small street market catering mainly to local office workers in
their lunch break.