The two stylised dolphins or sturgeons entwined around the base of standard lamp posts along the Thames are a hallmark of the lamps known as “dolphin lamps,” originally designed for the Victoria Embankment in the 1870s. The design was created by George John Vulliamy, inspired by the intertwined fish sculptures at the Fontana del Nettuno in Rome’s Piazza del Popolo, with the models produced by Charles Henry Driver. Although often called dolphins, the fish resemble sturgeons—a fish native to the Thames that represented the vitality and abundance of the river.
The lamps were installed in the late 1860s as part of the major development of the Victoria, Albert, and Chelsea Embankments, following the grand engineering scheme of Sir Joseph Bazalgette to improve London’s sewage system and create a riverside promenade. The inclusion of these stylised fish in the lighting design symbolised both a nod to classical architecture (with their Roman inspiration) and a celebration of the Thames as a life-giving river
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