Javan elephant  The Javan elephant ("Elephas maximus sondaicus") was proposed by Paules Edward Pieris Deraniyagala in 1953 as an extinct subspecies of the Asian elephant ("Elephas maximus"). His description was based on an illustration of a carving on the Buddhist monument of Borobudur in Java. It is considered synonymous with the Indian elephant ("E. maximus indicus").