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Handle material · Non-wood Natural Materials

Mammoth Ivory

Woolly mammoth tusk

  • Price bandVery high
  • OriginSiberia and Alaska permafrost
  • Water resistancegood
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Cream to light tan, sometimes mineral-stained blue, green, brown, or gray (this "stained mammoth ivory" is highly prized). The definitive identification marker is the Schreger lines, a cross-hatching pattern visible in cross-section. In mammoth ivory the Schreger angles are typically greater than 90°; in elephant ivory they are less than 90°. Customs officials use this geometric difference. It is legal in most jurisdictions, since it predates The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, which restricts trade in protected species; fossil mammoth ivory predates it and is generally exempt.; request documentation from reputable sellers.