unknown ("Murten elephant")
Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) at
Circus Bell and Meyers in United States

Biography

☨ ♂ unknown ("Murten elephant")
The dead elephant in Murten, Switzerland, 1866. The photo was taken 15 years after the first photograph ever, and may be the first photo taken of an elephant. (Freiburger Geschichtsblätter, Band 59)
Museum locations
Present / last location:	Bern Institute of Anatomy, in Switzerland

Date of arrival

1866-00-00	Bern Institute of Anatomy, Bern, Switzerland

Identification


Description
Species:	Asian elephant (Elephas maximus)
Sex and age:	Male ♂

People killed:	1: british elephant keeper Moffat
Origin
Born:	* wild
Birth place:	in Asia unspecified location
Death
Dead:	†1866-06-28
Death reason:	shot: shot with a canon in the town Murten, Switzerland
Locations - owners
Present / last location:	Circus Bell and Meyers , in United States

Date of arrival

	Circus Bell and Meyers
Record history
History of updates	2010-09-22: text correction 2025-04-03: text, source

Latest document update	2025-04-03 14:45:47

† unknown ("Murten elephant") is a dead Male ♂ Asian elephant (Elephas maximus), , who died 1866-06-28 at Circus Bell and Meyers , in United States, . Official death reason described as shot with a canon in the town Murten, Switzerland.

Museum locationThe Museum specimen remains of this animal is within the collection at Bern Institute of Anatomy, in Bern, Switzerland, since 1866-00-00.

Casualties

1 casualties

1866-06-28: elephant keeper Moffet fatal attack by unknown ("Murten elephant"). With his powerful Trunk he had twice thrown him into the air, then pressed him to the ground with his Tusks and finally kicked him with his Feet. It had taken the unfortunate man a whole agonizing hour to die. Shortly after noon, the mahout’s assistant led the female animal towards Fribourg. Several times, the elephant cow stopped to watch out in vain for for her longtime companion. † Moffet Died 1866-06-28

Origin

unknown ("Murten elephant") was born wild at Asia unspecified location.

Comments / pictures

1866-06-28: Mankiller: killed the 28 year old british elephant keeper Moffat.

The meat was sold in Murten and the Skeleton ended up in the Anatomical Institute of the University of Bern.

Reference list

References

Koehl, Dan, (2026). unknown ("Murten elephant"), Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) located at Circus Bell and Meyers in United States. Elephant Encyclopedia, available online retrieved 17 March 2026 at https://www.elephant.se/database2.php?elephant_id=3525. (archived at the Wayback machine)

Sources used for this article is among others:

Litterature about Circus Bell and Meyers

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