White Elephants
Rare, pale-skinned elephants were long considered sacred in Siam (modern-day Thailand), appearing on flags and symbolising royal power. Yet the pachyderm came at a price. Such was their prestige that they could not be used for work, and they required expensive food and specially made housing. According to legend, the kings of Siam presented a white elephant as a punishment- in-disguise to an unruly courtier. They had to accept the gift as a great honour, all the while knowing it would cost them a fortune. Although it is more likely that courtiers cared little for the cost, and it was actually foreign travellers who balked at the amount spent on an elephant, we still use the term to mean an expensive, useless item that is more trouble than it’s worth.