Mammoth Tusk value?

Will52100

Will52100

Joined
Dec 4, 2001
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Got a friend that is trying to sell for someone needing money a fairly nice mammoth tusk. I haven't seen it, but apparently it's got decent color and is approximately 68 pounds and very solid. According to what I've been told it was dug out of a coal mine back in the 60's and owner has had it mounted as a display piece since.

Any idea of what it'd be worth, who to sell it it to, and if it'd be better to sell as one piece or to cut into scales? I'd love to have it, but it's out of my price range. Supposedly they have all the paper work and documentation.

Thanks
 
No way to price it without detailed pictures. Probably worth more as a complete specimen, not cut up.
 
A quality knife with mammoth tusk scales would be a really nice heirloom to have. Depending on the maker and quality of steel I'm thinking it could be worth more than the tusk by itself. I would assume that a mammoth tusk would be able to be shaped into many sets of scales, which would mean many knives. And selling those knives would probably be easier than finding a buyer for the tusk. Most archeological finds like that end up donated to museums or schools. Unless you have possession of a complete skeleton or a found one frozen in ice, it's just a fossil. Mammoth teeth and tusks are found all the time. Here is a website where you can see what they go for http://www.fossilshack.com/mammoth-teethtusks.html
 
Like Don said, it would be impossible to price without pictures.

Grade of a tusk is a very important thing to consider when pricing a tusk. We grade them from "A" to "D" Generally grade "A" sells for about $100.00 a pound but it can go for much more if the color and condition are very good. Grade "D" sells for about $20.00 a pound.

We can't assume anything about the condition of your tusk, I have seen them displayed in every condition and every grade. A grade "A" tusk is more valuable as a display piece than cut up for ivory.

Here's how the math works. There is so much waist in cutting ivory for scales it takes about a pound of ivory for each set of scales. When I price a tusk for purchase, I plan on one set of scales for each pound of raw ivory. If I paid $100.00 a pound for a 68 pound tusk, I would need to be able to get 68 sets of scales that averaged $100.00 each to just break even. Then there's my time and consumables like electricity, sanding belts and epoxy for filling. I would need to sell the scales for a $200.00 average a set to cover my costs and make a little money on the tusk. Unless it was a very nicely colored tusk, I probably wouldn't be able to sell each set of scales for an average of $200.00. From any given tusk I can expect to get scales that range from $50.00 a set to maybe two hundred a set unless the colors are very nice like blue, green or black. In that case the price range would jump to between $90.00 to $350.00 a set. Those colors are very rare, on a good year I will buy maybe one or two tusks with any blue, black or green in it.

We usually use grade "B" or "C" ivory for scales, it comes in pieces or small sections, we need to buy it for about $50.00 a pound or a little less to be able to make any money on the scales. Grade "D" usually gets used for jewelry.

It's very hard to make a living cutting up ivory for scales, that's why there are only couple of us doing it anymore.

I hope this answers your question.
 
Kinda what I was thinking, I'm just trying to locate someone who deals in ancient ivory for them to sell it through. I'd love to have it myself, but I think the owner is asking around 10k for it. Even if I had it I'd be afraid of screwing it up by cutting it myself.

Thanks
 
Looks like we were typing at the same time, Mark. Thanks for the info, I'll pass it along. I'm thinking the guy paid too much for it years ago and wants to recoup his money now. Even if I had the money, I don't think I'd pay what there asking for it. My friend says it's "amazing", but then he doesn't know anything about ivory, even less than me, and I have no idea of the grade and haven't seen it.

Thanks, I'll pass the info along. My first sight unseen instinct is to leave it alone and let a dealer look at it and deal with it.
 
Will52100 said:
Looks like we were typing at the same time, Mark. Thanks for the info, I'll pass it along. I'm thinking the guy paid too much for it years ago and wants to recoup his money now. Even if I had the money, I don't think I'd pay what there asking for it. My friend says it's "amazing", but then he doesn't know anything about ivory, even less than me, and I have no idea of the grade and haven't seen it.

Thanks, I'll pass the info along. My first sight unseen instinct is to leave it alone and let a dealer look at it and deal with it.
Click to expand...

He may be able to find someone to pay $10,000 for it but it won't be a knife maker. Not a dealer either, he needs to find a collector, they are hard to come by these days.
 
Charles Turnage is an ancient ivory procurer. Google him , and go from there. I bought some mammoth ivory for a project, a few years ago. He has some really nice stuff!
 
Jogster - You can not make buy/sell offers in Shop Talk. If you want to talk sales or buying - send a PM or email.

Will - asking about the value and any selling problems was OK. Keep any sales talk by email/PM.
 
Another potential problem are the liberal politicians who are trying to make anything elephant-like illegal. Here in Oregon, on January 1, any ivory or even wooly mammoth must be less than 20% of the finished product (like a knife or handgun) in order to be legal to sell. I guess the Democraps do not want the wooly mammoth to go extinct.

For a grip to be less than 20% of a knife is a stretch but a handgun would probably be safe. However, scales for a knife or cut grips unmounted for a gun would likely get you into trouble. Be careful at Oregon shows after Jan 1 2017. Other states are trying to pass similar legislation.
 
Peter, That bill did not pass. It died in the house. I testified before both committees. There is however a bill being placed on the ballot for voter approval. They are keeping it really quiet like the did in Washington. They are hoping people do not read it and find out all their antiques will be worthless.

ETA;
BTW, the bill that was up for approval with the 20% clause, the item had to be produced prior to 1976 to qualify for that exemption.... And you had to be able to prove it.
 
I think a version of that bill did pass up here in WA.

The government mailer which supposedly described in non partisan terms, described that bill as one to save endangered species. Being it passed handily here, I'm fully expecting the mammoth population in WA to make a speedy recovery.
 
Yes that is the bill they are attempting to duplicate here. They are doing the same thing, saying it will save endangered species, elephants have been removed from the ES list. They are threatened now. Needless to say, Mammoths and Mastodons will thrive after this bill passes. We need to get the word out. Might have to start another thread. This one has been hijacked enough.
 
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