Thread: Ivory\Bone telling the difference ?

Ivory usually has lines running through it. The really primo stuff has lines that are very distinct while the lesser grade has very fine lines that aren't obvious you almost need a hand lens to see them. As a matter of fact the way the Custom's guys can tell elephant from the fossil stuff mammoth ivory is the angle at which the lines intersect and run.

Many thanks guys, information/advice very much appreciated.

Dunk

Everyone here was accurate in their description of ivory. You could probably do some more research here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivory

http://www.uniclectica.com/conserva/ivory1.html

i really did try and take good pictures but this is the best i seem to be able to get with my camera, any thoughts on if this is horn or ivory?

James...

You either need better pictures, or you need to read the information in the two links I provided.

So, you can read to learn how to take and process photo's or you can read how to identify ivory.


Or, you can bring them by my house and I'll tell you

Once you know ivory from bone, it's unmistakeable. Here are some tips to get you over that initial hurdle. I've never seen a bone handle that didn't show evidence of porosity somewhere. Ivory usually does have visible grain but you may not be able to see it in pictures. You will, however, notice that ivory scales are virtually always thinner and more delicate than bone. Bone is usually pretty thick and showing the pores as dark flecks, particularly toward the edges and around the pins. Bone is tougher than ivory and will rarely be found cracked. Where ivory is most often cracked is around the wedge pin on one side or the other but usually not both. This is because sometime during the life of the razor someone jammed the blade into the scales hard enough to split it out at the pin.

well the scales on this razor certainly are thin and theyre not porous at ALL so i'm thinking it may in fact be Ivory but seeing it should be in Robert's hands in the future it wont remain a question too long .

Many thanks again to all. (absolutely fantastic helpful enthusiasts\experts on this forum).
I am going to do a trawl around the antique market this weekend and attempt to identify the difference using your advice. I Will probably not find any Straights.(never do) but I imagine I will be able to find some cutlery or other that I can scrutinise to help actually visualise the difference myself.

Dunk