Ivory

Ivory is a hard, white, opaque substance that is the bulk of the teeth and tusks of animals such as the elephant, hippopotamus, walrus, mammoth, etc. Prior to the introduction of plastics, it was used for billiard balls, piano keys, buttons and ornamental items. The word "ivory" was traditionally applied to the tusks of elephants. Plastics have been viewed by piano purists as an inferior ivory substitute on piano keys, although other recently developed materials more closely resemble the feel of real ivory.

Types of ivory

• Elephant and mammoth ivory
• Walrus ivory
• Sperm Whale and Killer Whale ivory
• Narwhal ivory
• Hippopotamus ivory
• Warthog ivory

So-called hornbill ivory, derived from a bird, is not true ivory but resembles it in some ways.

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