The Elephant's Journey is a tale of friendship and adventure. At last they make their grand entry into the imperial city. They brave the Alps and the terrifying Isarco and Brenner Passes they sail from Rosas across the Mediterranean Sea and later up the Inn River (elephants, it turns out, are natural sailors). They make their way through the storied cities of northern Italy: Genoa, Piacenza, Mantua, Verona, Venice, and Trento, where the Council of Trent is in session. They cross the border into Spain at Castelo Rodrigo and meet the Archduke at Valladolid.Īccompanied by the Archduke, his new wife, the royal guard, Soloman and Subhro cross a continent riven by the Reformation and civil wars.
When it occurs to the king and queen that an elephant would be an appropriate wedding gift, everyone rushes to get them ready: Subhro is given two new suits of clothes and Solomon a long overdue scrub. Solomon and his keeper, Subhro, begin in dismal conditions, forgotten in a corner of the palace grounds.
Out of this material, José Saramago has spun a novel already heralded as 'a triumph of language, imagination, and humor' ( El País). This elephant's journey from Lisbon to Vienna was witnessed and remarked upon by scholars, historians, and ordinary people. In 1551, King João III of Portugal gave Archduke Maximilian an unusual wedding present: an elephant named Solomon or Suleiman.
