Elephant ivory

Elephant ivory is a material of great beauty and heavy reputation, and it must be spoken of plainly. Elephant ivory is exceptionally dense, with a silky warm tone and a fine Schreger pattern whose line angles are sharper than mammoth's — the very feature by which experts tell the two apart. But honesty matters more than admiration here: international trade in elephant ivory has been banned under CITES since 1989, and the great majority of countries strictly restrict or wholly prohibit its circulation. Only antique material with documents proving its pre-ban age and origin can be legal — and even then rules differ from country to country. We treat this material as a historical category, not a product: poaching for tusks pushed elephants to the brink, and feeding new demand is indefensible. Where old family beads are concerned, elephant ivory feels remarkably warm and smooth, with a soft glow no substitute matches; spun, it rings clear and melodic with a long bony tone. The patina of aged ivory is deep and honeyed, threaded with fine age cracks. Care is gentle: stable humidity, no direct sun or heat, dry wiping only. For those who want the same beauty with a clear conscience, we strongly recommend mammoth ivory — its fossil, legal, ethical counterpart. Elephant ivory is worth knowing and respecting as history, but the future of worry beads belongs to materials that cost no life.