The Uses of Ivory

Ivory is a popular material used to make ornamental jewelry. It is mostly white or yellow and it is opaque. Ivory is not a typical gemstone or mineral, it is called an organic mineral because it is created by living mammals, specifically elephants, hippos, seals and elks. Ivory refers to teeth and tusks of elephants primarily; however elephant Ivory is the same composition as other types of Ivory found on other animals. A tusk is teeth that extend outside the mouth.

Ivory is a calcite that is created by the mammal. The actual substance that most people refer to as Ivory is Dentine. Dentine can be easily carved and shaped with just steel tools. It is extremely beautiful and very valuable.

Most Ivory throughout the ages was used as ornamental jewelry such as beads, cameos, pendants, etc. Beside jewelry that is worn, items were created out of Ivory, most notably statues. Ivory was also used to create piano keys which was a major use of Ivory during the last 300 years.

Today, Ivory is no longer cultivated from living mammals. There has been a world ban on Ivory since 1989, this has been put into effect due to the fact that poaches have practically killed almost all the elephants due to their beautiful Ivory. It is stated that in 40 years, 97% of the 300,000 elephants in certain African countries were slaughtered for their Ivory production. Today, there are plenty of synthetic types of Ivory that have the same look and feel of traditional Ivory teeth and tusks.

Ivory - The History and Origins

Ivory is not a gemstone or mineral per say, but usually regarded as an organic mineral. Ivory comes from the teeth and tusks of mammals. Usually Ivory is associated with just elephant tusks and teeth, however other animals such as hippo’s and walruses also produce Ivory that is exactly similar in composition.

Ivory is made from calcite. The part of the tusk that is normally used is called the pulp, around the pulp is Dentine. Dentine is the part of the Ivory that is most valued and usually used for ornamental jewelry, piano keys and to make other fine objects.

Ivory has been known to man since the beginning of time. In fact, man used Ivory as a tool, as well as ornamental jewelry since the last ice age. Today, there is a world ban on the Ivory trade, due to the fact that poachers looking for Ivory have practically wiped out elephants almost to extinction. For instance, out of the 300,000 elephants that were in select African countries, in less than 4 decades, 97% of these elephants were wiped out.

However, Ivory jewelry is quite beautiful and can be used to create many items that are all shapes and sizes from beads, to statures, to charms and pendants, etc. Today, you can purchase synthetic Ivory that looks very similar and has a similar feel to traditional Ivory for much less the cost of true Ivory. For instance, these materials are used for pianos and other objects where Ivory was traditionally used for.