Keywords: Elephant in Battle.jpg en ndian and Himalayan Art Elephant in Battle Made in Kota Rajasthan India c 1750-70 Artist/maker unknown India Opaque watercolor gold and silver on paper 15 3/4 x 18 7/8 inches 40 x 47 9 cm Currently not on view 1994-148-394 Stella Kramrisch Collection 1994 Label The Indian elephant was used as a primary battle engine for over two thousand years across the subcontinent and was valued by rulers far above horses In this painting a heavily armored battle elephant rampages across a bright yellow Weld amid troops mounted on horses On his back are two soldiers armed with spears arrows and swords; the foremost is the mahout who wields the elephant goad that could give a trained elephant over a hundred commands by gentle touches to different parts of the animal's body The elephant has chains on its legs and carries more in its trunk They would have served as flails to attack the enemy infantry At some point after its making this vivid painting appears to have been cut down from a larger work and an apparently spurious inscription was added on the back circa 1750 -70 http //www philamuseum org/collections/permanent/88265 html mulR 11534 134 Made in Kota Rajasthan India PD-Art Uploaded with UploadWizard Elephant goad Historical images of Rajasthan 1750s paintings from India War elephants of the Mughal Empire 18th-century Mughal miniatures Cavalry of the Mughal Empire Infantry of the Mughal Empire Stella Kramrisch Collection |