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The Elfin Oak is the stump of a 900-year-old oak tree in Kensington Gardens in London, carved and painted to look as though elves, gnomes and small animals are living in its bark. The hollow, donated by Lady Fortescue, originally came from Richmond Park, and was moved to Kensington Gardens in 1928 as part of George Lansbury's scheme of public improvements in London.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Elfin Oak )〕 Over the next two years the illustrator Ivor Innes carved the figures of the "Little People" into it.〔 These included Wookey the witch, with her three jars of health, wealth and happiness, Huckleberry the gnome, carrying a bag of berries up the Gnomes' Stairway to the banquet within Bark Hall, and Grumples and Groodles the Elves being awakened by Brownie, Dinkie, Rumplelocks and Hereandthere stealing eggs from the crows' nest.〔 Innes also illustrated a 1930 children's book written by his wife Elsie and based on the Elfin Oak. In it, Elsie wrote: The inside cover of Pink Floyd's 1969 album ''Ummagumma'' features a picture of David Gilmour in front of the Elfin Oak. The comedian Spike Milligan was a lifelong fan of the Oak, and in 1996 he led a successful campaign to have it restored. Much of the work he did himself, leading a small team on Saturday mornings.〔〔Scudamore, Pauline. ''Dear Robert, Dear Spike'', (1991) p.32〕〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Elfin Oak – Kensington Gardens )〕 In December 1997 Heritage Minister Tony Banks declared it a Grade II listed structure.〔 KensingtonGardens-ElfinOak-Detail.jpg|Detail of the tree Elfin_Oak_figure.jpg|Close-up of a figure on the tree == References == 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Elfin Oak」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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