How They Weighed the Elephant?

Gather a lot of big stones. Put the stones on the boat until the boat, when it's out on the water again, sinks to the same watermark line it had when the elephant was in it. Then take the stones out of the boat and weigh them, one by one! That's how you can tell how much the elephant weighs!"

How are elephants weighed?

African elephants are the largest of all land animals, adult males weighing between 1,800 and 6,300 kg (2 and 7 tons/ 4,000 and 14,000 lb.). Females are smaller, weighing between 2,700 and 3,600 kg (3 and 4 tons/ 6,000 and 8,000 lb.).

What did the Mandarin weigh the elephant with?

Chong used a mechanical scale and the principal of buoyancy to weigh an elephant. He put the elephant on a boat and marked the water level. Then the servants filled the boat with rocks until it sank to the same line as when the elephant was on it.