to represent the myth of destruction. "Celebes" was once the popular name for the island of Sulawesi, one of the Greater Sunda Islands of Indonesia. Ernst told Roland Penrose that the title Celebes was derived from the opening words of a German schoolboys' rhyme with sexual connotations: History The painting's short original title is Celebes, according to inscriptions on the front and back of the canvas. Ernst painted Celebes in Cologne in 1921. The French poet and Surrealist Paul Éluard visited Ernst that year and purchased the painting and took it back to Paris. Éluard would buy other of Ernst's paintings, and Ernst painted murals for Éluard's house in Eaubonne. It remained in Éluard's collection until 1938 and was then purchased by the English artist Roland Penrose. It has been in the collection of the Tate gallery, London, since 1975 and is displayed in the Tate Modern. The money from Penrose's sale of the painting was used to set up the grant-giving Elephant Trust which continues to administer bursaries to artists and small arts organisation in the UK. The back of the canvas is decorated with some doodles that are seemingly unconnected to the subject matter on the front of the canvas, including two figures holding golf clubs adjacent to the word "GOLF". Sources External links Tate Gallery Paintings by Max Ernst Surrealist paintings Dada paintings 1921 paintings Elephants in art Collection of the Tate galleries