Royal Elephant

Twenty elephant subjects, dating from about 1570 to 1750, which have been selected from the collection of Howard Hodgkin. Elephants were highly prized by the Muslim and Hindu rulers of India, for their power in battle and as majestic mounts on ceremonial occasions.The royal elephants were often depicted by court artists, in expressive individual portraits or in scenes of hunting and processions.

Howard Hodgkin gave this work to the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, who curated the Collection for many years. They showed it and toured it on exhibition to the Freer/Sackler Gallery at the Smithsonian, Washington DC; Museum Rietberg, Zurich; the British Museum London and the Museo del Castelvecchio, Verona.