Provenance:

Purchased at a charity sale, 2007, to benefit Auckland Zoo Conservation Fund. Believed to be one of two works of this size, the other in the Collection of ASB Bank.

Kashin the elephant was a greatly loved resident of Auckland zoo from 1973 until her death in 2009.

She is fondly remembered by many New Zealanders as the ASB elephant and a star of the television programme The Zoo. A female Asian elephant, Kashin was born in North-East Thailand in 1968. She was four years old when she arrived in Auckland aboard a jumbo jet from Como Zoo in the United States.

With her friend, fellow-elephant Burma (still residing at Auckland Zoo) Kashin raised critical funds for valuable conservation projects and the protection of endangered species. The day of her death, Auckland Zoo closed its doors for day and later a special memorial day was held with over 18,500 visitors paying their respects and celebrating the life of this extraordinary elephant who touched so many lives.