Ambabari Elephant Statue - 14-Inch Hand-Carved Mango Wood

Why this one

2.4 kg - just over five pounds - of solid mango wood. That weight is the difference between this and the resin elephants sold at the same size, and you feel it the moment you pick it up. The carving is deep: the headdress, the jhool over the elephant's back, the frame of the canopy and three separate riders under it are all cut rather than moulded, then painted over the top. At fourteen inches it is the largest wooden animal we make.

Which finish

• Matte Black - black ground with the howdah, canopy and trappings picked out in colour. The higher-contrast of the two
• Teal Green - a soft mint-toned green, quieter, and the one that suits a lighter room

Both carry the same gold canopy and the same three riders. The photographs show them side by side, which is the best way to judge between them.

Where it goes

A console, an entryway table, a mantel, or a bookshelf where it has a full twelve inches of clear run. At five pounds and fourteen inches it is a floor-or-furniture piece rather than a shelf ornament, and it needs space around it - crowded, the canopy and riders stop reading.

What the elephant means

The processional elephant is Rajasthan's image of ceremony: it carries the bride, the deity and the king. In Indian tradition the elephant itself stands for memory, patience and steady strength, and Ganesha is elephant-headed. A walking elephant - trunk forward, in motion - is read as movement toward good fortune rather than repose, which is why it is given at beginnings.

Gifting

Griha pravesh and housewarmings, weddings and anniversaries, and a new business or office. It is the most substantial gift in the wooden range and it arrives looking like one.

Care

Wipe with a soft dry cloth, working into the carved detail with a soft brush. Keep water and cleaning sprays off the painted surface. Painted mango wood does not like standing damp or direct all-day sun.