For May half and half
This is one of the Sozo-no-Zo or Imaginary elephant carvings adorning the gable of the Kamijinko (Upper Sacred Storehouse) in the Toshogu Shrine complex in Nikko.
The Kamijinko was constructed in 1635. The designs for the sculptures were commissioned to a famous painter (Kano Tanyu). The only problem was that he had never seen an elephant . He had no choice but to design the sculptures from readings and word pf mouth descriptions.
Prior to the creation of the sculpture there had only been three instances where live elephants were brought to Japan.
