Police investigate how Rome's beloved Bernini elephant sculpture lost the tip of its tusk — again

ROME (AP) — Italian police are investigating how one of Rome’s most beloved monuments, the elephant sculpture designed by Baroque sculptor Gian Lorenzo Bernini, lost the tip of its left tusk — again.

Police found the 11-centimeter (4-inch) marble fragment near the statue over the weekend. They said on Wednesday that they had determined it wasn’t original to Bernini’s work but was added on during restoration work in 1977.

The same tip had already broken off during an act of vandalism in 2016, Rome’s city hall said.

Police were now reviewing security cameras to try to figure out who, if anyone, was responsible for breaking it off a second time.

The stocky little elephant, not far from Rome’s Pantheon, is a frequent stop for tourists. Pope Alexander VII commissioned Rome’s most famous Baroque sculptor, Bernini, to design it after Dominican friars discovered a small Egyptian obelisk in the grounds of their nearby convent, which is adjacent to the Basilica of Santa Maria Sopra Minerva.

The elephant, located in the Piazza della Minerva in front of the basilica, holds the obelisk on its back.

According to the Rome city hall website, Bernini and the friars disagreed about the work: The artist believed the weight of the obelisk could be borne by the elephant’s four legs, but the friars insisted the obelisk would be more stable with a stone support under its belly.

They won the argument, and the stocky look gave the elephant the nickname “Minerva’s Piglet,” because with such short legs and the central support, it looks more like a pig than an elephant.

According to popular legend, Bernini took his revenge against the friars by facing the rear of the elephant with its tail lifted toward their convent.

The iconic Elephant and Obelisk monument in Rome, designed by Baroque sculptor Gian Lorenzo Bernini, is seen without the tip of the left tusk on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026, after Police found an 11-centimeter (4-inch) marble fragment near the statue over the weekend. (Francesco Benvenuti/Lapresse via AP)

The iconic Elephant and Obelisk monument in Rome, designed by Baroque sculptor Gian Lorenzo Bernini, is seen without the tip of the left tusk on Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026, after Police found an 11-centimeter (4-inch) marble fragment near the statue over the weekend. (Cecilia Fabiano/Lapresse via AP)

This image released by the Rome Municipality on Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026, shows the 11-centimeter (4-inch) marble fragment that police found in Rome over the weekend near the iconic Elephant and Obelisk monument, designed by Baroque sculptor Gian Lorenzo Bernini, which was missing the tip of its left tusk. (Comune di Roma via AP, HO)

The iconic Elephant and Obelisk monument in Rome, designed by Baroque sculptor Gian Lorenzo Bernini, is seen without the tip of the left tusk on Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026, after Police found an 11-centimeter (4-inch) marble fragment near the statue over the weekend. (Cecilia Fabiano/Lapresse via AP)

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. Security Council is set to hold a high-level meeting Wednesday on the Gaza ceasefire deal and Israel's efforts to expand control in the West Bank before world leaders head to Washington to discuss the future of the Palestinian territories at the

first gathering of President Donald Trump's Board of Peace.

The U.N. session in New York was originally scheduled for Thursday but was moved up after Trump announced the board's meeting for that same date and it became clear that it would complicate travel plans for diplomats planning to attend both. It is a sign of the potential for overlapping and conflicting agendas between the United Nations’ most powerful body and Trump’s new initiative, whose broader ambitions to broker global conflicts have raised concerns in some countries that it may attempt to rival the U.N. Security Council.

Asked what he hopes to see from the back-to-back meetings this week, Palestinian U.N. Ambassador Riyad Mansour told reporters: “We expect from the international community to stop Israel and end their illegal effort against annexation, whether in Washington or in New York.”

The foreign ministers of the United Kingdom, Israel, Jordan, Egypt and Indonesia, among others, are expected to attend the monthly Mideast meeting of the 15-member council after many Arab and Islamic countries requested last week that it discuss Gaza and Israel's contentious West Bank settlement project before some of them head to Washington.

The board to be chaired by Trump was originally envisioned as a small group of world leaders overseeing his 20-point plan for Gaza’s future. But the Republican president's ambitious new vision for the board to be a mediator of worldwide conflicts has led to skepticism from major allies.

While more than 20 countries have so far accepted an invitation to join the board, close U.S. partners, including France, Germany and others, have opted not to join yet and renewed support for the U.N., which also is in the throes of major reforms and funding cuts.

Mike Waltz, the U.S. ambassador to the U.N., dismissed concerns about the composition of the Board of Peace, telling conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt in an interview Monday that the most relevant countries, including Qatar and Egypt, which are in touch with Hamas' leadership, have accepted the invitation.

“All of those countries are on the Board of Peace, singing the same tune as the United States,” he said.

The Security Council will be meeting a day after nearly all of its 15 members — minus the United States — and dozens of other diplomats joined Palestinian ambassador Mansour as he read a statement on behalf of 80 countries and several organizations condemning Israel's latest actions in the West Bank, demanding an immediate reversal and underlining “strong opposition to any form of annexation.”

Israel, whose U.N. mission did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Wednesday's meeting, is launching a contentious land regulation process that will deepen its control in the occupied West Bank. Israeli Energy Minister Eli Cohen said it amounts to “de facto sovereignty” that will block the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Outraged Palestinians, Arab countries and human rights groups have called the moves an illegal annexation of the territory, home to roughly 3.4 million Palestinians who seek it for a future state.

The U.N. meeting also is expected to delve into the U.S.-brokered ceasefire deal that took effect Oct. 10 after more than two years of war between Israel and Hamas. The U.K., which currently holds the presidency of the council, said the meeting will include briefings by U.N. political chief Rosemary DiCarlo and by Israeli and Palestinian civil society representatives for the first time since the Oct. 7 attacks.

Aspects of the ceasefire deal have moved forward, including Hamas releasing all the hostages it was holding and increased amounts of humanitarian aid getting into Gaza, though the U.N. says the level is insufficient. A new technocratic committee has been appointed to administer Gaza’s daily affairs.

But the most challenging steps lie ahead, including the deployment of an international security force, disarming Hamas and rebuilding Gaza.

Trump said this week that the Board of Peace members have pledged $5 billion toward Gaza reconstruction and will commit thousands of personnel to international stabilization and police forces for the territory. He didn't provide details. Indonesia’s military says up to 8,000 of its troops are expected to be ready by the end of June for a potential deployment to Gaza as part of a humanitarian and peace mission.

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump walk on the South Lawn to the White House after arriving on Marine One Monday evening, Feb. 16, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)

FILE - The symbol of the United Nations is displayed outside the Secretariat Building, Feb. 28, 2022, at United Nations Headquarters. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)