Following yesterday's walk round central London I will detail a few of the wonderful things just standing around and free to see.
These are the fantastic Sphinx that stand either side of Cleopatra's Needle at the Embankment on the Thames.
These are set looking at the obelisk instead of guarding it. The one on the right has damage from a bomb dropped near the obelisk during WWI. They have the words netjer nefer men-kheper-re di ankh, which translates as "the good god, Thuthmosis III given life". They were designed by George John Vulliamy and installed in 1878 when the obelisk was erected.
The obelisk was given to the British by Muhammad Ali King of Egypt and Sudan in 1819 to commemorate the victories of Nelson and Abercromby.
The obelisk is set on a time capsule containing many things of low value like toys and coins etc. Although it was given us in 1819 the government at the time declined to pay to have the 21m 224ton red granite needle transported here.
The plaques on the base tell you all about the obelisk.
It Was first erected in 1450BC and moved to a temple dedicated to Cleopatra and Mark Anthony. Just after 12BC it was pulled down and this action and its burial preserved the hieroglyphics until it was dug up and transported in a metal cylinder with a mast and rudder pulled behind a ship. During a storm in the Bay of Biscay it was lost along with a 5 man rescue crew who are commemorated on one of the plaques. It obviously was rescued and erected in 1877.
Moving along the Thames towards the Houses of Parliament you can walk through the Victoria Embankment Gardens which are closed at night. They have seats and plenty of statues to see. 12 of the most famous people are on the statues.
In the middle between the gardens is the Ministry of Defence.
Then just before the Houses of Parliament is the statue of Boudicca and her two daughters. She died in AD61 and was queen of the Iceni of the Britons. The position of the statue is over what was thought to be her burial mound, although nothing was ever found there. It took 30 years to make the model and another 5 to raise enough money to have it cast in Bronze.
Next is Big Ben at the corner of the Palace of Westminster.
Very difficult to photograph from this approach due to the busy area. It is also being restored.