![]() ![]() Whether any specific rulers actually bestowed such a passive-aggressive gift is uncertain, but the term has since come to refer to any burdensome possession-pachyderm or otherwise. While ostensibly a reward, the creatures were tremendously expensive to feed and house, and caring for one often drove the recipient into financial ruin. According to legend, if an underling or rival angered a Siamese king, the royal might present the unfortunate man with the gift of a white elephant. White elephants were once considered highly sacred creatures in Thailand-the animal even graced the national flag until 1917-but they were also wielded as a subtle form of punishment. Some historians have since dismissed Nelson’s famous quip as merely a battlefield myth, but the phrase “turn a blind eye” persists to this day. ![]() ![]() When his more conservative superior officer flagged for him to withdraw, the one-eyed Nelson supposedly brought his telescope to his bad eye and blithely proclaimed, “I really do not see the signal.” He went on to score a decisive victory. During 1801’s Battle of Copenhagen, Nelson’s ships were pitted against a large Danish-Norwegian fleet. The phrase “turn a blind eye”-often used to refer to a willful refusal to acknowledge a particular reality-dates back to a legendary chapter in the career of the British naval hero Horatio Nelson. ![]()
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