This got me interested. I have Goex FFFg, Swiss FFg and ... three cans of Elephant 2Fg, Lot 006, Date Code: 03-01. Pernambuco Powder Factory, Brazil. Two are still sealed, and the third is almost 3/4 full. *blush* recently I have been shooting a lot more Pyrodex and Triple7, sorry.
Searching the Web for Elephant Powder
Portuguese Wikipedia and using Translate.Google: Herman Theodor Lundgren, (b 1835 Norrkoping, Sweden; d. 1902 Recife, Brazil) was a Swedish immigrant who settled in Brazil and became a citizen. He was a translator and honorary consul for the Nordic countries in Brazil. He noticed that Brazil had to import its gunpowder at high prices and decided to found Pernambuco Powder Factory in 1866 in the port of Recife. He made a fortune and branched out into textiles.
The current S/A Pernambuco Powder Factory was founded in 1968 and has 24 employees today. It apparently no longer exports black powder to the US.
ELEPHANT BLACK POWDER SINCE 1866 TRADE MARK
https://trademarks.justia.com/owners/s-a-pernambuco-powder-factory-1888428/
I found a test dated 2001 comparing Goex, KIK, and Elephant using patched ball with 70gr charge in .50 cal Hawkin percussion rifle, 100 gr charge in .62 cal flintlock rifle, 70 gr charge in 20ga flintlock shotgun and 85 gr in a .54 custom percussion rifle. Elephant had about 12 to 14% lower velocity and dirtier fouling. Test at
http://www.norwestcompany.com/comparison.htm
At one site, I found a note that prior to year 2000 the factory did not remove the bark from wood used to make their charcoal. (????) Another site said 1999 was the best vintage for Elephant Powder, then GOEX upgraded their own nitrate sources and 2001 upgraded their charcoal, leaving Elephant way behind.
And from another site: "A man was sprinkling powder on his front yard."Whats the powder for?" asked his neighbor. "To keep the elephants off the grass," replied the first man. "But we don't have elephants around here!" "I know. Great stuff isn't it?""