From Deseret News archives:
Giant mechanical elephant performs in London
The 42-ton contraption, made mostly of wood and metal, was created by the French theater group Royal de Luxe as part of a play it performs as the beast is pushed along by a truck.
"It's terrifying! "I've never seen such a spectacle," exclaimed Japanese student Mina Yagi, 34, as the elephant approached a fence separating it from the crowd at Horse Guards Parade, normally used for royal ceremonies.
The animal is used by the troupe to help tell the story of a forlorn sultan beguiled by visions of a young girl whom he believed was traveling through time. The sultan builds a time-traveling elephant to lead him on a journey to find the girl, who is represented by a giant marionette towering 16 feet high.
The hydraulically operated elephant rolls along with wheels attached to the back and front, where an operator controls the steering. Several other operators harnesses lift the feet as the creature moves, while others control the trunk and blinking of the eyes.
Its floppy ears were created from 720 square feet of leather, while 22 pistons control the trunk, organizers said.
For Friday's performance, a loud boom signaled the start of the show as characters dressed as the sultan and his entourage mounted the pachyderm and towered over the crowd.
The creature drew gasps and cheers from the crowd as it swung its trunk from side to side, spraying water on people wilting under a sun worthy of midsummer.
On the Net:
The Sultan's Elephant, www.thesultanselephant.com
Comments
A 40-foot-tall mechanical elephant rolls through the streets of London Friday as part of a traveling theater show \ using its piston-operated trunk to spray spectators with jets of water. The hydraulically operated elephant rolls along on wheels, with a truck pushing it and an operator steering it.
- The origins of Thanksgiving Day 5:07 p.m.
- Test your Thanksgiving Day IQ 5:07 p.m.
- Fun facts about Thanksgiving 5:06 p.m.
- Words of thanks 5:06 p.m.
- Animal lovers blast grandma 5:06 p.m.
- Save glass coffee carafe 5:06 p.m.
- No easy answers on mammograms 5:06 p.m.
- Funds help Utah science education 4:46 p.m.
- Growing pot earns man 5 years 4:42 p.m.
- Boyle hopes debut album 'delivers' 4:17 p.m.
- Real Champions
- Bronco, Kyle rubber match
- RSL wins MLS Cup on penalty kicks
- BCS at-large bids up for grabs
- Plenty on line for rivalry game
- Time for big matchups in WAC, MWC
- Protests against Phoenix LDS temple
- Hall, Johnson matchup key
- Is talking about religion taboo?
- BYU's Lamb, Jorgensen reprimanded
- Buttars wants to limit gay rights laws
214 - Glenn Beck to enter politics?
212 - RSL wins MLS Cup on penalty kicks
192 - Palin plans tour stop in Utah
178 - BYU records with win
132 - Palin's book shows she's unqualified
131 - Bronco, Kyle rubber match
115 - Officer cleared in Cardall Taser case
103 - BYU cuts Women's Research Inst.
103 - Jazz finally win in San Antonio
99
I live in the area and drive the road every day and it is in need of repair...
"I take my life in my hands driving around the wards and temples on...
Back in April, there was an article about the Calvary Baptist Church in an...
oh, that's funny. trying to make someone else look stupid when really you...
Legalize marijuana.
"For whatever difference it makes, the Pitt team Utah defeated in the Fiesta...
Our society constantly clamors over "rights" but often neglects the...
Legalize marijuana.
Based on your findings, Pres. Roosevelt, Truman, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon,...
For the record, the following is from the latest Rasmussen poll on November...



You can be the first to comment on this story.