This is one of the many Hamadryas Baboons (Papio hamadryas) at the Singapore Zoo. It's certainly not the king, or alpha male, as it is not nearly large enough, but it does have the disposition of a humanly one – wise and ponderous – in this picture. The real alpha male was off displaying his might somewhere else.

These baboons are natives to the Great Rift Valley of Africa, though they could also be found in the wild around the Arabian Peninsular. The zoo did a great job mimicking their natural habitat. Their enclosure is huge, offering plenty of room for them to climb and run about. And these hyperactive monkeys will certainly not disappoint even photographers with the least patience. They are constantly doing something, be it wrestling with one another, playing with a piece of leaf, or at the particular time i visited, trying to mate.

Interestingly, Ancient Egyptians consider Hamadryas Baboons attendants to Thoth, the lunar god of wisdom, and therefore sacred.