What we see here is a fine example of a composite animal. Various animals and humans constitute the elephant. All animals are recognizable; human heads seem to be peeping out; birds are concentrated in the front body; but together, they are all juxtaposed so well, assimilating the flow and rhythm. The sheer naturalness of the painting is more striking than the individual elements.
The 'mahaout' is dressed in princely attire, wearing an eight-pointed crown with a plume, and holding an elephant goad in his hand. Another man, an escort perhaps, walks ahead, holding a flag, the tip of which has a goat face. The flag, the escort's shoulder cloth, the mahaout's waist band and the elephant's tail move in harmony from right to left, lending movements to the static picture.
This description by Kiranjyot.
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