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  6. The Story of Suleyman: Celebrity Elephants and Other Exotica in Renaissance Portugal

The Story of Suleyman: Celebrity Elephants and Other Exotica in Renaissance Portugal

The Story of Suleyman: Celebrity Elephants and Other Exotica in Renaissance Portugal

The Story of Suleyman: Celebrity Elephants and Other Exotica in Renaissance Portugal

Item No.
111696

      • Product Description: This is the incredible story of a brave, small elephant, Suleyman, and his decade-long passage by land and sea to the jungles of Ceylon to Portugal, Spain, and ultimately, to Austria. It was an epic journey, punctuated by a pirate attack off the coast of France, a trek across the Alps, and a celebrated river barge voyage. By the time this pachyderm finally reached Vienna on May 7, 1552, it had covered almost 15,000 kilometers (about 9,300 miles) on its journey from Asia and across Europe.

        In  1542, a decade earlier, King John III of Portugal and his wife, Catherine of Austria had received the elephant as a diplomatic gift from the King of Kotte in Ceylon (part of their newly established Asian empire). Seven years later, in 1549, they gave the young bull to their five-year-old grandson, Prince Carlos of Spain, to ease his isolation and loneliness.

        This highly unusual gift delighted the young prince, but caused great consternation at the Spanish court, where officials had no clue as to how to care for the beast. Staggering expenses, coupled with the cold climate of northern Castile, determined the elephant's future path. The prince's aunt, Maria of Austria, and her husband, Emperor Maximilian II, rescued the elephant and took it with them when they departed for Vienna in 1551.

        As the star of the Empress Maria and Emperor Maximilian II''s triumphant return to Vienna, the pachyderm created an immediate sensation. Suleyman and another elephant that arrived in Vienna in 1563 were true, if unlikely, celebrities of Renaissance Europe. This volume chronicles the fascinating history of these pachyderm pop stars and their singular roles as symbols of dynastic power.

      • generic_text_8: Paperback
      • generic_text_3: Annemarie Jordan Gschwend
      • generic_text_7: 978-1-61658-821-2
      • generic_text_2: 20 x 25.5cm
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