QUALITIES OF IVORY 233 



Asiatic variety is denser and therefore more difficult to polish; 

 it also changes colour more readily, becoming yellower. 



A somewhat curious circumstance in regard to African 

 ivory as a whole is that "soft ivory" comes almost exclu- 

 sively from the eastern haK of the continent, while "hard 

 ivory '* comes from the western part, so that there is a fairly 

 well-marked longitudinal line separating the regions whence 

 these two varieties come. In general it may be said that 

 Indian ivory, while hard, is, in trade parlance, more "glassy," 

 that is, brittle, than the African varieties. Of the latter 

 Ambriz ivory is hard; that of the west coast of medium 

 hardness. East Africa and Zanzibar furnish the "soft" 

 variety. The finest translucent ivory comes from the west 

 coast, between 10° north and 10° south of the equator. 



When freshly cut, African ivory, if of good quality, has 

 a peculiarly rich-toned transparency, due to the presence 

 of a considerable amount of oil, and it shows but little 

 grain or fibre. As the oil dries out on exposure the ma- 

 terial whitens somewhat. The whiteness of the less oily 

 Asiatic ivory lacks this special warmth of tone; moreover, 

 it has a greater tendency to discoloration than has African 

 ivory.* The rind, or outside covering of the tusks, offers a 

 variety of colours in material from different sources. Thus 

 we have in African tusks light and deep orange, hazel and 

 brown, and even brownish black ; while the rind of Asiatic tusks 

 is lighter hued, rather fawn colour or stone colour. Some- 

 times the rind is only one tenth of an inch thick, and differs 

 but little in hue from true ivory. f In selecting a tusk, chief 

 stress is laid upon its straightness, solidity, and roundness. 



The quality of ivory, its "softness" or "hardness," has 

 been found to bear a constant relation to the habitat and 



*Charles Holtzapffel, "Turning and Mechanical Manipulation," Vol. I, London, 1843, 

 p. 144. 



fHoltzapffel, op. cit., pp. 142, 145. 



