The Buddhist cultures of Southeast Asia, including Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia, traditionally harvested ivory from their domesticated elephants. Among them, the best works were admired because they were purchased by Western museums, wealthy people, and the Japanese Imperial family. From the mid-1800s, the new Meiji government's policy of promoting and exporting arts and crafts led to the frequent display of elaborate ivory crafts at World's fair. In Japan, ivory carvings became popular in the 17th century during the Edo period, and many netsuke and kiseru, on which animals and legendary creatures were carved, and inro, on which ivory was inlaid, were made. Chinese craftsmen carved ivory to make everything from images of deities to the pipe stems and end pieces of opium pipes. Southeast Asian kingdoms included tusks of the Indian elephant in their annual tribute caravans to China.
Ivory definition free#
Early reference to the Chinese export of ivory is recorded after the Chinese explorer Zhang Qian ventured to the west to form alliances to enable the eventual free movement of Chinese goods to the west as early as the first century BC, ivory was moved along the Northern Silk Road for consumption by western nations. The Chinese have long valued ivory for both art and utilitarian objects. The Syrian and North African elephant populations were reduced to extinction, probably due to the demand for ivory in the Classical world. Adomnan of Iona wrote a story about St Columba giving a sword decorated with carved ivory as a gift that a penitent would bring to his master so he could redeem himself from slavery. Solinus, a Roman writer in the 3rd century claimed that the Celtic peoples in Ireland would decorate their sword-hilts with the 'teeth of beasts that swim in the sea'. There is some evidence of either whale or walrus ivory used by the ancient Irish. Ivory was often used to form the white of the eyes of statues. Īn ivory tabernacle featuring the Madonna of Caress, Franceīoth the Greek and Roman civilizations practiced ivory carving to make large quantities of high value works of art, precious religious objects, and decorative boxes for costly objects. The word ivory ultimately derives from the ancient Egyptian âb, âbu ("elephant"), through the Latin ebor- or ebur. The national and international trade in natural ivory of threatened species such as African and Asian elephants is illegal. Elk also have two ivory teeth, which are believed to be the remnants of tusks from their ancestors.
Elephant ivory is the most important source, but ivory from mammoth, walrus, hippopotamus, sperm whale, killer whale, narwhal and warthog are used as well. Ivory has been valued since ancient times in art or manufacturing for making a range of items from ivory carvings to false teeth, piano keys, fans, and dominoes.
Finished ivory products that were seen in Harappan sites include kohl sticks, pins, awls, hooks, toggles, combs, gamesmen, dice, inlay and other personal ornaments. Ivory is a main product that is seen in abundance and was used for trading in Harappan civilization. The trade of finished goods of ivory products has its origins in Indus valley. Tagua nuts can also be carved like ivory. īesides natural ivory, ivory can also be produced synthetically, hence (unlike natural ivory) not requiring the retrieval of the material from animals. The trade in certain teeth and tusks other than elephant is well established and widespread therefore, "ivory" can correctly be used to describe any mammalian teeth or tusks of commercial interest which are large enough to be carved or scrimshawed.
The chemical structure of the teeth and tusks of mammals is the same, regardless of the species of origin. Ivory is a hard, white material from the tusks (traditionally from elephants) and teeth of animals, that consists mainly of dentine, one of the physical structures of teeth and tusks. Cylindrical ivory casket, Siculo-Arabic, Hunt Museum