[by this point I am integrating information from other sources into Shaw's interview. I am trying to bracket these and reference them if possible.]

Elephants are and integral part of royalty and Buddhism. In ancient times wars have been fought over white elephants such as in the 1569 sacking of Ayuthaya by the Burmese king, King Burandong. King B. demanded as homage 2 of King Chakkraphat of Ayuthayaís 7 albino elephants. When King C. refused King B. came in and wipe out the whole court of King C. This is when it is believed by some that the ceramics industry in Sukhothai stopped, and ended the independent kingdom of Lan Na to the North.

The main use in ceramics, other than in the depiction of war, is through the Buddhist use of the elephant as a symbol of the Buddha. [At this point could go quite far into the use of the elephant as a symbol in Buddhist art and mythology.

In 1926 84 live elephants were used in a large royal procession staged here in Chiang Mai celebrating the king. Elephants are also used on occasion in Buddhist processions. King C. in 1550 had a 300 elephant cavalry [though this didn't save him form the Burmese invasion]. And elsewhere and when, Hanibal took 29 elephants of the alps with him.

Ceramic elephants frequently had a small cup attached to the back of the beast used for holding holy water, wine or some other offering and was place on alters during ceremonies of offering and the like. [As most Thai are animist use of the elephants could also have been an integral part of there worship and veneration of local spirits and ancestors.] Elephants were formed both in the North and the South at all the major kiln sites. And while there are large scale elephants, upwards of 60 cm, they eventually succumbed to the miniaturization movement for use in the spirit houses and their daily offerings of pacification to the local deities and spirits. [It will be interesting to see if there is any connection to the spirit houses in use here in Thailand and those in use in Bali.]

There is one known instance [though undoubted there were others] of elephants being used in surface decoration.