Largest
collection of elephants
[June
2]MERCED, California, US--Mallernee-Briley has the world's largest
collection of elephants: 5,000. This new world record will be included
in our 2008 edition of Book of World Records.
Mallernee-Briley
,
50, claims to have 5,085 elephant-related items. But this number
includes duplicates, which she cannot count for the record.
The previous record for "largest
elephant collection" is 4,233 items, according to an e-mail from
the Guinness World Records office in London. It was set by the recently
deceased Sandy Rosen-Hazen, who had been collecting items relating
to elephants since 1940.
Mallernee-Briley, a Merced resident
since 1985, is employed as a sales associate at Wal-Mart. She buys
some elephant items at work, but more often she receives them as
gifts from customers and co-workers.
Her enthusiasm for elephants began
at age 16 when her aunt and uncle gave her a plaster elephant they
purchased from a road-side vendor for $5. "Since then, people have
just given them to me," she said. "I just love elephants. They are
really cool."
Mallernee-Briley
keeps a written inventory of all her elephant-related collectibles.
It includes items such as movies about elephants and an elephant
tusk replica. She is also having her collection photographed.
Photo:
"The Elephant lady"
( click here to
enlarge
)
And she actually does have a trash grabber
with an elephant on top.
She said about a third of her collection
are gifts from friends and family, a third she bought in stores,
and a third she found on e-Bay. "It's not an obsession," she said.
She acquired about 400-500 ceramic figurines
and stuffed animals before packing them away about seven years ago.
But after a couple of years, she realized she
missed them. "I kind of kick-started it," her husband said. "I started
bringing (elephants) to her."
She
has custom-made wood sign in her house. It says "elephant lady."
Sources: Marleene website, media reports
Links:
Marleene website at www.myspace.com/elephantlady
