Hanno.RaffaelWerkstatt1516.Berlin

This drawing depicts Hanno, the celebrated Indian elephant that lived in the Vatican gardens during the early 16th century. The animal is rendered in profile with precise anatomical detail, featuring a mahout seated on its neck holding a traditional elephant goad. Textual notations in the upper right and along the body indicate that the artist was recording the animal's dimensions and appearance directly from life.

Hanno represents the 'Court of Wonders' characteristic of the Renaissance papacy, where exotic animals were studied as marvels of the natural world and symbols of global reach. The elephant's presence in Rome influenced contemporary intellectual culture, linking the empirical observation of natural philosophy with the symbolic tradition of the bestiary.