ANCIENT INDIAN ART CANVAS PRINT

THE ROYAL ELEPHANT RIDE Elephant with Howdah [The carriage which is set on the back of the elephant] Elephant Howdah were used extensively during the Carnatic Wars and the Anglo-Mysore Wars. A Howdah, or Houdah (Hindi: हौदा), derived from the Arabic هودج (hawdaj), that means « bed carried by a camel », also known as Hathi Howdah (हाथी हौदा), is a carriage which is positioned on the back of an elephant, or occasionally some other animal such as camels, used most often in the past to carry wealthy people or for use in hunting or warfare. It was also a symbol of wealth for the owner, and as a result was decorated with expensive gems. Most noteable are the Golden Howdah, the one used in display at the Napier Museum at Trivandrum which was used by the King of erstwhile Travancore and the one used traditionally during the Jamboo Savari (Elephant Procession) of the famous Mysore Dasara. The Museum at the Mehrangarh Fort, Jodhpur, Rajasthan has a gallery of royal Howdahs.