The Elephant in the Room – 18th Century Neighbour is the Pits
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The Elephant in the Room –
18th Century Neighbour is the Pits
A few years ago when we lived in a flat before we got married and got a house I was sitting on the balcony when a cat landed on the floor next to me. It had fallen from some floors up, presumably when trying to catch a bird. So that evening I had to go knocking on everyone’s door to find out its owner. It was a perfectly nice cat, but according to our lease the cat was essentially a forbidden beastie. We kept mum about it and presumably the poor thing is still confined to a two bedroom upper floor apartment: Seems a shame for the cat. But animals can be very strange and not the best of neighbours. Indeed a few hundred years ago it could go from the sublime to the ridiculous. A nightmare neighbour it seems kept a rented elephant in an upstairs flat in Edinburgh. Tell that to the local council! This tidbit of 18th century news has been found in a letter of complaint found in the archives. Dated 1705 the missive was written by Adam Kerr, a baker who owned a shop near Fishmarket Close in the Old Town. The creature wasn’t the least bit fastidious and the waste from the beast damaged the shop below. The baker wrote to the Edinburgh dean of Guild Court complaining that his shop was being damaged by great quantities dung and water.
Rented Beast in a Flat
And did you know the name Baxter is an old variant of baker? Kerr described himself as a ‘baxter’ and petitioned the Guild Court to visit a Dutchman called Abraham Sever who lived upstairs and kept the elephant. The female Indian elephant had spent 20 years touring round Europe with her owner who died in 1703. The owner’s will stipulated that it should go to his assistant who then rented it to Mr Sever. So the elephant was “on tick.” The poor old elephant didn’t take to the weather or the conditions in Scotland and promptly died the following year in Broughty Ferry, near Dundee. Well it wasn’t going to end well in those conditions I suppose. But what would be the amount of money to rent an elephant?
No White Elephants Here
Did you know the expression ‘white elephant’ comes from Siam or Thailand as it is now known? It seems the kings of Siam of old gave such animals as a gift to courtiers they disliked, in order to ruin the recipient from the great expense incurred in maintaining the animal. Well I can tell you that here at James Pirie there are no white elephants and every quality gift will be treasured by the receivers if you choose well from the thousands of fantastic items in our ranges. For the avid collector or for that impressive gift you can order the Old Imari Solid Gold Band Swan which would be a stylish addition to any table laid for the good and the great amongst your acquaintance: Or a fine extra on the mantel shelf.
It doesn’t come cheap, but swans never say cheep anyway.
