The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of May 13, 2026

A horizontally oriented charcoal and white chalk drawing on blue paper depicts an elephant facing our left. Dense, dark lines form its head and thick front legs, while white highlights define its spine and trunk. The trunk curls inward near the ground. To our left, vertical white strokes fill the background. Faint, sketchy lines on our right suggest the hindquarters. A dark signature is scrawled in the lower-left corner.

Study of an Elephant

c. 1867–1910

John Macallan Swan

(British, 1847–1910)
England, 19th century
charcoal
Sheet: 22.8 x 26.7 cm (9 x 10 1/2 in.)
Dudley P. Allen Fund 1929.554
Location: Not on view
  • O. C. H.Gutekunst Esq.
    ?–1929
    (P & D Colnaghi & Co., Ltd., London, England), sold to The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
    July 31, 1929–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Conserving the Past for the Future. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 4-May 6, 2001).
    Drawings from the Collection of Sir Robert Witt, London. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (September 30-October 30, 1938).
  • {{cite web|title=Study of an Elephant|url=false|author=John Macallan Swan|year=c. 1867–1910|access-date=13 May 2026|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1929.554