On Tallness, medieval St Paul's Spire and its visual impact

I recently blogged about the child posting-block nature of modern tall buildings in the City of London (Gherkin, Walkie-talkie, cheese wedge) http://londonlandscapeobservatory.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/skyscrapers-infantile-disorder.html . which made me think. Medieval London also used height for impact, but (forgive the pun) in a much more hierarchical way. Take for instance the spire of St Paul's Cathedral

A comparison of modern St Paul's Cathedral with its medieval equivalent - and the visual impact that would have today

From http://londonist.com/2013/04/time-travel-london-draw-paint-or-photograph-the-anachronistic-city.php

Medieval St Paul's is said to have had a spire of 489ft (149m) higher than any but Lincoln Cathedral. Christopher Wren estimated it at 460ft (140m), a tad less. Anyroad-up, it was tall.