def get_copied(original, graph, namespace=""):
    """
    Get a copy of the instance 'original', present in 'graph', under
    the given 'namespace'.
    'copied_variables' is a dict mapping pertinent variable names to the
    copy instances.
    """

    # The name of the copied instance
    if namespace != '':
        new_name = namespace + '/' + original.name
    else:
        new_name = original.name
    
    return graph.as_graph_element(new_name, allow_tensor=True,
                                  allow_operation=True)