Ceylon, 1869
by Joseph Lawton

Kurunegala, a city located in the heart of Ceylon (currently Sri Lanka), is surrounded by huge rocky outcrops which, according to legend, were originally animals that were magically turned to stone when they threatened the town’s water supply. This image, taken by Joseph Lawton and sold out of his studio in Kandy, Ceylon, shows a herd of wild elephants bathing at a watering hole just outside of the city, content to avoid any danger of being magically petrified.