Cinnamon Kandy the Circus Elephant

Cinnamon Kandy, a colorful and much-beloved statue of a circus elephant by the same name, has stood in many different locations throughout San Antonio for the last 75 years. Hand-painted to give it that festive circus look, the petit pachyderm has been the backdrop of generations of family photos.

The statue was created in the 1930s by artist Julian Sandoval, after being commissioned by circus collector T.M. Scaperlanda as a gift for a fellow collector of circus memorabilia, Harry Hertzberg. The elephant first stood in Hertzberg’s front yard, until his death in 1940.

It was then gifted to the city and moved to the entrance of the Carnegie Library, and later to the Hertzberg Circus Museum. After the library moved and the circus museum closed, the statue was sent to the Witte Museum where it stood at the entrance for many years.  

Over the decades, the little elephant was banged up, scratched, and had its tusks broken off, the result no doubt of countless children climbing onto the statue for pictures. The decision was made around the turn of the 21st century to restore the statue and return it to its original glory, with new tusks and a fresh coat of paint. A final destination for the statue was also chosen. It is currently standing in front of the Morton Research and Collections Center. It was re-dedicated in 2006 and officially given the name Cinnamon Kandy.

A second, nearly identical elephant statue has been placed next to Kandy in recent years. Needless to say, the family tradition of taking pictures with the little circus elephant will continue for decades to come.