Colorful Fossil walrus tusk

DanGraves · Oct 4, 2012

Here is a tusk that measures 12 3/8 inch not along the curve. 1 5/8 inches wide at widest. small end1 inch on darker side and other is 1 1/8. on the dark side there is depressions by the tip that I have in the photo's. It is at deepest 1/4 inch. at other end is a small split that if for full tang will have to cut about 1 inch off. about as premium as it gets. should give 2 handles about 4 1/2 inches each. Depends on how you choose to cut. About 7/8 thick at thickest and about 3/4 at thinnest. Tusk is not polished. Any questions just ask. 500.00 and 12.00 shipped priority mail CONUS. My e-mail and paypal is dangraves4923@earthlink.net

tryppyr · Oct 4, 2012

I doctored your images for you... just a little.

DanGraves · Oct 4, 2012

Thanks. I am not very good with a camera.

milesofalaska · Oct 7, 2012

Thanks for picture doctoring (smile). Are you sure it is a walrus tusk? It has some oddities that are interesting. Leaving the possibility it might be … but what else might it be? Something fossil older then it looks ….(if so, could be worth more so might be worth investigating). Has an odd kink. Has an odd diameter change. One view looks too straight. The end that goes in the mouth seems not thick enough nor hollow enough. I have seen such a think… related to a hippo? I forget the name of the animal though, it only has a Latin name. Anyone else have ideas on this? Tempted to get it just to take to the fossil show end of Jan.

tryppyr · Oct 8, 2012

It's definitely an interesting piece. Looks a bit like the piece I bought at the Portland antique expo in July... except for the dark interior bit. I hope we can determine what it is (apart from being very interesting, that is).

milesofalaska · Oct 9, 2012

The good news would be- if it is not walrus it is worth more, maybe much more. So Dan.... do you know what part of the world this is from by how you aquired it? Like direct from an Eskimo or walrus dealer or at an auction where most everything else was from a certain area? I have a cople of dealer friends who know more trhen I do I will forward the pictures and ask ther opinion. Not trying to mess with the sale, as I say, it is possible this could be worth more money.

Robert Carter · Oct 9, 2012

Yes very interesting indeed. Looks like a fossilized hippo tooth. Whatever it is, I like it

DanGraves · Oct 9, 2012

It is positively walrus ivory that came from private native lands in Alaska with other walrus ivory. Wish I was better with a camera as this is a stunning piece.

javand · Oct 9, 2012

It looks very similar to a big piece I cut up earlier this year, same colors and pattern, which was a beach washed piece, obviously originally quite large as the enamel was very thin or gone after minimal clean up, to about the same dimensions as Dan's.

No doubt about it once cut into though.

Nice piece, wish I could afford it atm Dan.

DanGraves · Oct 9, 2012

The more time goes by and I may just keep it.
Dan

javand · Oct 10, 2012

I would. Even if it's like mine and doesn't have super thick color, it's unbeatable for frame/coffin handles.

I sold the rest of what I got out of that batch to *keep* the blue/black stuff. Also, if its like mine, it's super thick core, which cut, and flipped, produces extremely beautiful spacers.