A Giraffe in Vienna by Jasper Sharpe

A Giraffe in Vienna 

The zoo in Vienna was one of the first to be built in Europe. Founded as an imperial menagerie in 1752 at the order of Emperor Francis I, it is located in the grounds of Schönbrunn, the former summer palace of the Habsburg monarchy. Expeditions were sent to Africa and the Americas to capture animals and birds, the first of which to arrive was a single elephant. The zoo was officially opened to the public in 1779 by the Emperor's wife, Maria Theresa. Polar bears, hyenas and kangaroos appeared early in the 19th century, thrilling crowds of visitors and impressing foreign dignitaries. 

In 1828, the zoo received a giraffe as a gift to Emperor Franz I from Mehmet Ali Pasha, the founder of modern Egypt. It was not the first giraffe to arrive in Europe - Julius Caesar had taken one as a trophy from his successful campaign in Egypt in 46 BC, only to have it torn to shreds by lions in the Colosseum, while another had been more peacefully presented to Lorenzo de Medici in 1486 by the Burji Mamluke Sultan of Egypt - but it caused a sensation nonetheless. 

The giraffe, which curiously remained nameless, was one of three sent by Mehmet Ali Pasha to royal collections in Europe, the others going to George IV of England and Charles X of France. According to recent studies, the three giraffes had been captured as calfs in the Ethiopian highlands by Arab hunters, and carried on the backs of camels to Khartoum. From there the animals were taken by boat nearly 2,000 miles down the Nile to Alexandria and shipped to Europe, accompanied all the while by Arab grooms and three cows that provided each animal with 25 litres of milk each day. The animals were so tall that holes had to be cut in the deck above the ships' cargo hold in order that their necks could fully extend. 

The Schönbrunn giraffe arrived at the Adriatic port of Fiume, where it was lifted into a specially designed horse-drawn carriage and pulled under military escort across the Alps to Vienna - an altogether more leisurely journey than that of Zarafa, the French giraffe, who was invited to walk more than 500 miles from Marseilles to Paris.  

Its arrival in Vienna triggered an explosion of interest in all things 'giraffe'. Spotted clothes, gloves, porcelain and jewellery were all produced bearing the animal's motif, a perfume was created and many ladies' hairstyles were shaped into towering 'giraffe' arrangements. Music was composed on giraffe-shaped pianos built, hilarious 'Gallop' dances were choreographed, and theatre director Adolf Bäuerle wrote a play titled The Giraffe in Wien or Everything à la Giraffe. Giraffe fever extended as far as the city's culinary scene, in the shape of candy, cakes and the well-known Giraffeln pastries which were sold in Viennese bakeries well into the twentieth century. A Viennese gasthaus, the Blaue Traube, even hosted a 'Giraffefest' with the animal's Arab handler, Hagi Ali Sciobari invited as guest of honour. 

Sadly the celebrations were short-lived. As a result of injuries sustained to its back during the long transport to Europe, the giraffe died just one year later. Not long afterwards its brother in English also succumbed to a premature death and was handed over to the Royal taxidermist John  Gould. Of the three only Zarafa lived a long life, thrilling the crowds at Paris' Jardin des Plantes for more than 18 happy years. In 1851, a larger herd of giraffes was brought to Vienna and housed in a wonderful Biedermeier-period house built to accommodate their every needs. Happily, their stay was rather longer. 
 

Christa Riedl-Dorn's book Hohes Tier - Die Geschichte der ersten Giraffe in Schönbrunn

will be published by Braumüller, Wien in May 2008. 

Jasper Sharp