According to sculptor and professor Jussi Mäntynen, his best-known work, Stag Elk, was based on the mythical Elk of Hiisi in the Kalevala. Mäntynen repeatedly emphasised the animal’s importance to him, both as a particularly significant source of experiences of nature and as an artistic subject.

Created by an artist who also worked as a conservator, the sculpture closely follows the anatomy, posture, overall appearance and characteristic emotional expression of a real elk. Casts of the work can be found in Turku, Helsinki, Lahti and Vyborg.