colour variations on ivory

[Gustav]

A question: are such colour variations on an ivory hilt within norms or identificator of some "home" work?

[Sajen]

Hello Gustav,

I think that this hilt have a natural patination and nobody have done some home work on it. I have seen and read that Cirebon ivory handles are colered original black but I never have seen this by Madura handles. It is until today a mystery for me why some ivory handles after years still have a nearly white/cream colour and others are very dark. See for example this two Donoriko handles from my collection.

Best,

Detlef

[Marcokeris]

Some years ago I saw in Yogya a very big and long size elephant white ivory tooth. The owner told me it was from African elephant. There was together also a little yellow/brown ivory elephant tooth. I asked why a different colur: the owner told me it was from Sumatran elephant because these animals have yellow teeth.
I know that there are also different way to colur white ivory: one is to put ivory in strong tea water ..... there is also another way (in Africa was rather usual)... is to put ivory in organic yellow liquid for some days

[Berkley]

Several decades ago I rescued this piece from a jeweler who planned to cut it into thin slices to make scrimshawed pendants . I think it is safe to say that the color is natural.

[Gustav]

Thank you Detlef, Marco, Berkley.

I assume, my elefant must be of very mixed origins .

[Sajen]

I think that this different colouring is very common by old ivory. Here an other example fom my collection, a Jawa Deman handle from Sumatra.

[asomotif]

There are african horns made from ivory.
They come from the Benin / Cote ivore region.
and they vary between white and red. maybe natural, or maybe coloured I don't know.

I have heard that in africa ivory object are sometimes rubbed with material to colour it. But I also have seen an ivory bracelet where the ivory itself had parts that where red of colour and this was the natural colour.

But indeed I also see items now and then that are artificially aged sometimes by burning it over a flame.

Ps. I also have seen african lip plugs that had extensive crackings and the seller was honest enough to tell that this was done artifically.
They heat up the ivory and then cool it down very fast in water causing the material to crack.
We bought the lip plug never the less, and after a few months pieces of ivory started to fall off.
So this artificial cracking is very bad for the firm structure of the material.

Ps. marine ivory from the sperm whale has dark parts.
You see bugis hilts occasinally made of sperm whale. see this example.

[David]

Certainly the color of the ivory as it ages is also due in part to the environment in which it ages.

[Battara]

Another piece to the puzzle - sulphur. Exposure to sulphur is what darkens ivory. The more sulphur in the particular environment (or longer exposure) the darker and yellower it becomes.