Help With Unusual Ivory Piece

[musicsurf]

I was hoping someone might have some insight into what this piece is and possibly dating it. It is ivory. The center is a rose and it is a separate piece from the rest and sits inside a track that is a part of the elephants. This allows the row of elephants to spin freely around the rose. I was thinking maybe it was some kind of Victorian baby toy, but I am sure about that. Thank you in advance for any help.

 

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[G.A.P.metal]

Its beautyful...but i don`t know what its for

 

[Havilah_Springs]

Hello musicsurf and welcome to Tnet.

Can we get a picture of the backside and maybe something for size reference? It is very difficult to tell from a picture as to it being true ivory or not, I see a couple of things in your photo that raise some concerns. Have you tested it to be sure that it is ivory? The reason that I am asking is I have delt a lot with ivory, selling my Great Uncle's collection that he acquired while in the Orient during WWII. There were some pieces that you would swear were ivory, but were not. You really need to test them. There is a quick and easy test that you can perfom to be sure.

H_S

 

[musicsurf]

Sorry, it is 2" across and the backside is identical to the front. I am 100% sure the elephants are ivory. The rose may be bone, but I would rather not do the burn test on it to find out for sure.

 

[lostcauses]

Crude carving, I can see the grain so ivory or seed ivory it is, Decorative for tourist sales most likely.
Seed ivory or vegetable ivory is a possibility.

 

[Broken knee]

Hi, musicsurf welcome to the forum, you can test it your self to see if it is Ivory or not? Take a pin or needle heat the end red hot and touch it in an inconspicuous spot, if it smells like burnt hair or finger nail then it's Ivory. It has a very distinct smell. Otherwise it's probably plastic. From your pic I cant see any grain in it witch lead's me to think it's plastic but that test will be conclusive. Please let us know your results? HH
Broken Knee

 

[stefen]

Crude carving, I can see the grain so ivory or seed ivory it is, Decorative for tourist sales most likely.
Seed ivory or vegetable ivory is a possibility.

Several years ago I bought some seed ivory for lathe turning...soft when first off of the palm and turns rock hard very quickly.

Found in South America and in the orient...

Take a look at this site and you will see pictures of the seeds and several carvings:
http://waynesword.palomar.edu/pljan99.htm