The Concrete Elephant is a sculpture and local landmark standing along the A30 in Camberley on approach to The Meadows roundabout.

The Concrete Elephant
Trollope & Colls White Elephant
Map
ArtistBarbara Jones
Year1963
TypeSculpture
MediumConcrete
SubjectElephants, Piping
LocationCamberley, United Kingdom
Coordinates51°19′59″N 0°46′16″W / 51.33305°N 0.77101°W / 51.33305; -0.77101

It was created by Barbara Jones for Trollope & Colls for the Lord Mayor's Show held on the 19 November 1963, carried on a yellow low loader with a pink and grey cab behind a person dressed as a zebra carrying a zebra crossing pole and light and a red post office telephone box.[1][2] It was to represent their pioneering use of reinforced concrete in pipework.

The piece was installed in its current location in 1964, when Trollope & Colls gained permission to sit the elephant at the entrance to their yard off the A30 London Road.[3] Over the years the sculpture has faced a number of damages, in 1982 part of the trunk fell off, in 1993 the ears were stolen, and in November 1987, it was painted over with large black spots.[3]

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References

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  1. ^ "Watch Davis Family Films: USA – Lord Mayor's Show, Blackfriars (1963) online - BFI Player". player.bfi.org.uk. Retrieved 2024-01-23.
  2. ^ "The Concrete Elephant". Surrey Heath Borough Council. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
  3. ^ a b "Concrete elephant's 50th birthday trumpeted in Camberley". SurreyLive. Retrieved 2 May 2022.