This story appears in the August 2013 issue of National Geographic magazine. The royalty of India—Hindu and Muslim—understood long ago that power was best wielded from the back of an elephant.

The herd, an art installation of 100 life-sized Indian elephants called "The Great Elephant Migration," stand tall between 36 and 37 streets. The project was built by Elephant Family USA ...

Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. Jonathon Keats is a writer and artist who critiques museum exhibits. Everyone was an elephant expert when Hansken arrived in the Netherlands.