{"product_id":"elephant-with-a-beaded-chain-marble-statue-180cm","title":"Elephant With a Beaded Chain Marble Statue - 180cm","description":"\u003ch3\u003eDescription\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eAn elephant stands three-quarters on, a metal chain hanging from the headpiece across its cheek. A carved headpiece crosses the brow above a beaded collar, and a floral rosette marks the cloth. Rope-carved rings encircle each ankle, its ears lie spread and folded and its tusks are stubby. Below stands a pedestal carved with a run of lotus-petal panels. White marble with grey veining - and one ornament that is not stone at all. The necklace is an applied gold-coloured metal chain strung with small red and black beads - not carved, not painted, and not stone.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eDrilling for Something That Is Not Stone\u003c\/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eAlmost everything on this elephant is carved. The chain is not: it is a made ornament, hung from small drilled seats at the headpiece and the throat, and those seats are the reason the order of work matters. A drill wanders on a polished surface - the bit skates before it bites and leaves a scar beside the hole - so the seats are bored while the stone is still matte from the abrasive, before any polishing, and plugged with wax while the surface is brought up around them. The chain goes on last of all, after the piece is finished, which is also why it can come off again.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe chain and its beads are the smallest things on this sculpture and the only colour, and they are wasted at a distance - from twenty paces this is a white elephant and nothing more. Put it where people pass close: an entrance hall, a courtyard, a terrace beside seating, the turn of a path. At 180cm the chain hangs at about eye height, which is where it wants to be seen. Outdoors, remember the chain is metal and will weather differently from the stone it hangs on, so a sheltered position suits the pair of them better than an exposed one.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eAn Ornament That Wants Looking At\u003c\/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eEighteen to twenty weeks. Carving the drilled seats for the applied chain precedes any finishing, since a drill wanders on a polished face. The pedestal and its lotus-petal panels are cut and the bed proved level. The beast rises from a block of its own, legs kept as heavy columns, then body and the folded ears. The headpiece, beaded collar, flank rosette and the rope rings at the ankles are all carved. The chain seats are bored while the stone is still matte and waxed shut, the surface is then brought up, and the chain is hung last once everything else is complete. Only the chain is applied; the carving itself takes no pin, dowel or filler at all. Near 3,403kg across beast and pedestal, craned in turn onto a poured concrete footing. Our main studios are in the UK (Birmingham) and Dubai, with additional global workshops.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOrnamented animals occupy part of \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/animal-sculptures\"\u003eanimal sculptures\u003c\/a\u003e, and classical carving \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/classic-sculptures\"\u003eclassic sculptures\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eSpecification\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003ctable class=\"spec_table\"\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eHeight\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e180cm\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eBase\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eIncluded\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eMaterial\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eHand-Carved Natural Marble\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/tbody\u003e\u003c\/table\u003e","brand":"Giant Sculptures","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53836584747355,"sku":"MST-ANI-094","price":25656.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0869\/3383\/2027\/files\/MST-ANI-094_1.jpg?v=1787171648","url":"https:\/\/giant-sculptures.com\/products\/elephant-with-a-beaded-chain-marble-statue-180cm","provider":"Giant Sculptures","version":"1.0","type":"link"}