Antique Ivory - A hard sell?

Hi everyone,

I wanted to ask everyone how they feel about trading in antique ivory.

It's a touchy subject for sure. For dealers who do online trade, have you every sold any antique ivory, or even tried? Was there backlash is you did?

For those of you who are here as buyers, would you buy antique ivory items? Would you still do business with a trader who does? Or, would you "throw the baby out with the bathwater" (was it were), and simply boycott their shop?

Personally I am of two minds. I understand the argument against the trade of antique ivory, and the possibility that it continues to drive horrifically cruel illegal slaughter of elephants. On the other side, these are beautiful antiques that deserved to be preserved.

Edit--
I should add that I am not asking to put anyone on the spot, and won't hold anyone's answers against them.

I ask because I just bought some, they were too cheap and too beautiful to pass up, but now I am worried that I won't be able to find a market for them.

 

So preserve them....& keep them for yourself.

& don't be confused by ANTIQUE vs NEWER......
Unless it's mastodon ivory....ivory is ivory...tusk by tusk !
they slaughter thousands to get newer ivory.........
they slaughtered Millions to get antique ivory !

 

Where I am, it's not even legal to sell it any more, so it's a moot question for me. Ebay won't let you sell it either, except in the form of wood inlay and piano keys, etc. I'd be comfortable handling fossil ivory, but the newer stuff can skeeve me out.

 

I agree. I wouldn't touch anything pre 1900, let alone modern.

I know and trust the auction house they were bought from, and their provenance.

But I suppose that still leaves me in an ethical bind

 

I get your semantic point. Ivory is ivory is ivory. And the slaughter of elephants now is the same as then.

Perhaps I will find a museum that can give them cultural context and make a donation to anti poaching group.

 

I have collected, bought and sold ivory for a while now. It doesn't bother me. So long as it's antique I don't care.

 

Here in the UK its still legal to buy and sell pre 1947 Ivory, That might change in time.
I like everyone understand the worry about the slaughter of Elephants, However I really don't see that banning the sale of Antique Ivory is going to stop it.

I think that if you have Ivory or still want to buy Antique Ivory for your collections then bear in mind its probably not going to be an investment, Just treasure it and enjoy it for what it is.

 

If cocaine was $10 an ounce ....you wouldn't see it any more on the street, because no one would bother making it .
If elephant tusks where 5 cents a pound......they'd all live happily ever after !

Money , money, money..............Money !!!!

 

The problem is when unscrupulous people sell modern ivory as antique, I believe that is why we are moving to ban all ivory sales.

 

Hi,
The antique ivory I can deal with. I had a Victorian waste basket made out of an elephants leg. It still had the toenails on it. One came off but I glued it back on. I had it for a long time but after a while I was catching so much grief from everyone who saw it. I sold it and now I wish I still had it. My major piece of ivory is a cribbage board counter. It has two tiny screw tops on the ends with the two different color pegs inside for counters. It is in a box with a glass lid. I also have my Grams ivory earrings and pin. They were a present from her aunt when she turned 15. My most expensive piece I sold for 1300 dollars. It was a sewing etui for needles.
greg

 

I do support bans if it will help stop the slaughter of elephants.

Now, the question of what to do with the ivory that already is out in the public I'm not so sure what to say. Some time back I bought a possibly ivory carving at a yard sale. The older couple was selling things they'd accumulated and most things were from the '50-'60s so not antique but let's face it that's 60 years ago give or take. I won't try to sell it and I'll just consider it as material unknown.

 

If I see a nice ivory piece I will buy it but not to sell nowadays, just to keep because I like it. We will leave experimenting with banning ivory sales to the USA.

 

I would like to think that will be the case but we have Prince William jumping on the Ban bandwagon and the previous government so I don't know.

Hopefully they will be so busy with Brexit it will be put on the back burner.

 

I am pretty sure the royal family have tons of ivory items around a dozen palaces and castles. They will slap the beggar down.

 

Every new level of ivory ban has produced a higher profit for poached ivory

The most endangered elephant populations are the ones with the most prohibitions on use

The populations where they are regarded as a sporting trophy are healthy to over abundant

 

Yes they do and he wants it all destroyed, How ridiculous! He seems to forget that all the royal treasures belong to the nation not his family.

 

I feel sorry for anyone who has bought antique Ivory in good faith as an investment for their declining years only to find it might be worthless, It's very unfair to my mind.

 

I wouldn't say that ivory is WORTHLESS. It's just that there's so many damn goody-two-shoes moralisers out there these days that it's bloody hard to sell.

 

When I run across a nice bit I either leave it lay or buy it to pass along to a friend. My personal ivory collection consists of a carved seashell on a chain. It's as old as I am if not older. Here in CT you need so much paperwork to resell ivory that anyone in the trade has pretty well given up.

 

In Australia, Europe and Britain, selling antique ivory is perfectly legal. I know people who do it all the time. I know America is notoriously stiff about this stuff.