London’s docks received all manner of goods from across the British Empire, from tea and spices to silks.

However, there have been some more unusual imports, for example, in October 1947 20 baby elephants arrived at George V Dock. They travelled from Ceylon (Sri Lanka) on the SS Arbratus and were destined for Tom Arnold’s Christmas Circus in Harringay.

This image shows four elephants in South West India Docks, returning from a Chipperfield’s Circus tour of South Africa in 1968. From left to right are Sally, Leila, Mary and Camella in the sling.