Elegance of Africa

知恵があり、ストイックで、深い内面のつながりを持つアフリカゾウには、草原に暮らす群れと熱帯雨林に暮らす群れが存在します。彼らは、アフリカ大陸の美しさの象徴であり、彼らを取りまく生態系で大きな役割を担っています。家族の強い絆と知性に溢れた彼らの姿は、私たちのElegance of Africaコレクションのメインキャラクターです。 目を引く新しいカラーのグレージュと822面のクリスタルファセットで形作られたSCS 2022年度限定作品 Elephant Fayolaをフィーチャーしたこの新しいクリスタルクリエーションは、群れを率いるゾウのおばあちゃんの優美さと力強さを表しています。 

マルティン・ツェンドロン氏がデザインした息を呑むようなこのクリスタルクリエーションの発表を記念して、アフリカゾウの不思議について様々な情報を集めました。 

アフリカゾウは、アフリカの中央部から西部にわたる熱帯雨林から、サハラ砂漠の南の地域にあるサバンナまで生息しています。アフリカゾウの耳の形は広大なアフリカ大陸の形に似ているのに対し、同じ象でもアジアゾウの耳はインド亜大陸の形をしています。 

アフリカゾウは家族の長をメスが務める母権制で、彼女が群れのリーダーとして群れを率いながら、長い移動をおこないます。SCS 2022年度限定作品 Elephant Fayolaはこの群れのリーダーをモデルにしており、Fayolaはアフリカの言葉で「栄誉と共に歩く」という意味です。誇りと強さを持ち、最年長で最も経験を積んだゾウのおばあちゃんが群れを統率します。群れは通常、3匹から25匹ぐらいのゾウで構成されています。 

These gentle giants stand tall in the heat of the vast planes of the Serengeti. As the world’s largest land animal their height ranges between a towering 8ft and 13 ft. Elephants weigh anywhere between 5000—14,000 lbs . With their large stature and roaming ways, it is no surprise that they spend over three-quarters of their day consuming food on their migration journey.

Elephants don’t just look majestic their complete anatomy is adapted for the often-inhospitable conditions of their natural habitat under the blazing sun. In the scorching heat of Africa’s plains, the elephant’s skin helps them to stay cool and avoid sunburn. With tough skin that is 2.5cms thick, the many wrinkles on the surface of their bodies help them to save water. It is this impressive skin that is captured in crystal with the new color greige featured for the first time on the SCS Elephant. But the skin of elephants is not as tough as people think, to protect their skin from the sun, elephants sprinkle sand onto their backs, another sign of their ingenious natures. 
 
As a highly intelligent species, these dynamic creatures make incredible leaps soon after birth with elephant calves learning to stand just 20 minutes after they arrive into the world . A milestone which is captured in our cheeky Baby Elephant Madisa crystal creation. After two days, the newest additions can keep up with the herd, as the elephants continue to roam and migrate under the watchful eye of the grandmother Fayola who leads them across the Serengeti. 

Whether an Elephant is picking up an object, finding food, stripping bark from trees, or defending itself from attack, its stunning ivory tusks are in fact teeth that have evolved for many essential purposes. Forceful, majestic, and wrapped in durable enamel the ivory tusks are seen on both male and female African elephants, and each elephant has a dominant tusk, just as humans have a dominant hand. 

A masterpiece of design, the Elephant’s trunk is capable of much more than we might think. This multitool is made up of muscle, giving the Elephant both strength and flexibility to uproot trees or delicately pick up smaller objects and pluck leaves. From smelling, drinking, and spraying water, the wonders of the Elephant’s truck also help the animal to communicate from miles apart. With its truck the Elephant creates seismic signals, or vibrations in the ground, which the animals pick up using their bones. 
 

But these elephants are endangered. Sadly, due to the illegal ivory trade 9 out of 10 African elephants have been wiped out in the past 100 years, leaving just 415,000 in the wild. A stark reminder that we should cherish and protect these beautiful creatures and respect their place on this earth. 

We hope our crystal creation portraying this grandmother elephant’s stoic beauty sheds light on the gentle nature of these wonderful creators, reiterating the need to protect the African Elephant and the habitat that surrounds it.

Find out more about the creation of the Elephant Fayola in this article