Ivory
Left: very large elephant ivory dice.
Right: 16mm mammoth ivory dice
more informations in Wikipedia article: Ivorytable of contents
General
Ivory refers to the substance of the tusks of elephant, mammoth and other animals such as. Walrus, sperm whale etc.
Since 1973, no trade in ivory has been allowed thanks to the conservation agreement.
Only a few have the permission to work with ivory.
Comparison between mammoth and elephant
Ivory dice
It used to be reserved for the rich to own cubes of ivory. The material was scarce and expensive.
In the meantime, cubes are only available at high prices on antique markets.
The typical reticular grain has only the ivory of the trunks. This differs by arrangement of the intersecting lines. This structure, also called Retzius' or Schreger's lines, shows different angles of intersection, which the connoisseur can recognize with the naked eye.
The following data are indicative:
- Ivory angle: 100 - 120 degrees
- Mammoth angle: 80 - 90 degrees
- Mastodon angle: 40 - 50 degrees
2 antique ivory cubes with Tax Stamp
- Ivory: about 1.7-1.85 g / cm3
- Mammoth: about 2.0-2.2 g / cm3
elephant
mammoth
mastodon
credits
category: materials