London. Camels.

Despite having walked along the Embankment many times, I had somehow never spotted these striking camel benches before.

Luckily, someone has already written a brilliant blog about them, which you can read here. In summary, they were created sometime in the mid to late 1800s, as “suitable ‘street furniture’ to give London – heart of the British Empire – a look of prestige and style”.

That blog author notes that they have been faithfully maintained and restored ever since, though on the day I visited, some of them were looking a little worse for wear. (They must be quite intricate things to maintain!)

I am a big fan of camels, though don’t especially like the way humans force them to carry us and our stuff, so I have slightly mixed feelings about them holding me up on this bench (and that’s not even getting into the issues of empire and colonialisation their style implies). I do, however, like their calm, slightly world-weary expressions, which feel somehow fitting for this setting.

The benches themselves have quite bucket-like seat formation, which really isn’t my favourite. (And as you can see in the picture above, this one is quite damaged on one side). Overall the wood needs replacing or revarnishing and the camels could do with a lick of paint as well, but they are still entirely serviceable.

Much like this bench I wrote about previously, also on the Thames, they are raised up for your viewing pleasure.

Mixed feelings though I may have about their theme, I do hope they have a home for a long time to come.

Comfort of bench: 5/10
Capacity of bench: around 6
View from bench: 8/10 lovely Thames view of the Oxo tower and more!
Accessibility of bench: Up a couple of steps means these are not great for anyone with mobility issues
Adventure level: Low — at the very centre of London near many public transport hubs!