Oh goodness... what do we do?

My Mom was going through a box of stuff from my Grandmother's and Great-Grandmother's homes. A lot of it has been in storage for quite some time, and we just haven't had time to go through and toss what isn't needed and keep what is.

She found some small ivory statues. I'd say they are about six inches high and two inches wide. We have no idea what to do with them. I know I can't keep them because it would bring us all out of whack with nature. My Mom thinks they are gross, and doesn't want them either.

This is the second time we've had a conversation about this kind of thing. The first time she found a fur coat and had it made into a kitty blanket.

Any ideas?

If no one in the family wants them, put them on Ebay and give the money to a local cat rescue? But you can't sell ivory, can you? Oh well...

Originally Posted by taterbug

If no one in the family wants them, put them on Ebay and give the money to a local cat rescue?

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That's a good idea! We've been calling around and the response we are getting is: "Ew. Ivory. I can't have something from a dead elephant in my house."

I have to say I agree. At the very least we have the boxes that they came in so we are able to show that they were purchased before the Ivory embargo.

Ivory as in, elephant tusk??? I would almost sell them on eBay.... Other than that, I don't know, do you have a pawn shop that would take them? It might be hard to sell them considering the laws about Ivory, I'm sure you could find someone to take it though. I've seen some Ivory things on display in museums. Maybe you can hook up with the black market and get some cash there I have no idea how a person would even find the black market, but good luck to you

Originally Posted by EnzoLeya

Ivory as in, elephant tusk???

I would almost sell them on eBay.... Other than that, I don't know, do you have a pawn shop that would take them?

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Yes, Ivory as in elephant tusk. My Grandfather was a traveling sales man, and would get unique forms of payment sometimes. Most of the stuff he'd sell again and get cash for it, but some of the nicer things he'd keep. We have a whole set of Reed and Barton silver because one of his clients couldn't pay in cash.

I could be wrong, but I believe the laws against selling ivory don't apply to ivory that can be shown to have been bought pre-embargo. Distasteful as it is, you might want to have the statues appraised, in case they're valuable... and if you did sell them, you could do a lot of good for an animal-rescue charity.

You might begin by looking for similar items on eBay, to see how prices on them are running.

Originally Posted by CarolPetunia

I could be wrong, but I believe the laws against selling ivory don't apply to ivory that can be shown to have been bought pre-embargo. Distasteful as it is, you might want to have the statues appraised, in case they're valuable... and if you did sell them, you could do a lot of good for an animal-rescue charity.

You might begin by looking for similar items on eBay, to see how prices on them are running.

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We have the boxes that show they are pre-embargo Ivory. Thank goodness my Grandmother was a bit of a pack rat.

My Mom was so funny. I was on the phone with her as she was going through the boxes, and when she opened them she gave a little shriek. "Ewwww.... it's dead elephant! Ew Ew Ew Ew. I'll never understand why people liked this stuff. It even feels creepy. Like pulled tooth creepy."

(One of my Mom's gross out moments is touching pulled teeth. She hates it.)

Originally Posted by CarolPetunia

I could be wrong, but I believe the laws against selling ivory don't apply to ivory that can be shown to have been bought pre-embargo. Distasteful as it is, you might want to have the statues appraised, in case they're valuable... and if you did sell them, you could do a lot of good for an animal-rescue charity.

You might begin by looking for similar items on eBay, to see how prices on them are running.

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I agree with everything Carol said to do!

If no one wants the ivory statues, then maybe list them on ebay and sell them to the highest bidder. While ivory is pretty, I personally won't buy it cause they kill the elephant for that little bit of ivory.

BTW ivory IS the elephant's tooth you know

As long as you can prove it pre-dates CITES, then you're ok to sell it as far as I know. Honestly though, I wouldn't put it on e-bay at least until you know its value, you should look for a dealer who can value them (tell them you need to know a value for insurance purposes to stop them going into 'rip-off' mode )

Are you sure they're ivory? Bone is used often for that sort of thing and can easily be mistaken for ivory if you're not familiar with handling both materials. Ivory figurines are often slightly curved in the same arc as a tusk to avoid wastage, whereas bone figurines are more likely to be straight

Originally Posted by EnzoLeya

I've seen some Ivory things on display in museums.

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That's an idea. Why not donate it to a museum or art gallery?

Bring them to an antique dealer. If it is pre embargo they would give you a pretty penny for them.

Originally Posted by Epona

As long as you can prove it pre-dates CITES, then you're ok to sell it as far as I know. Honestly though, I wouldn't put it on e-bay at least until you know its value, you should look for a dealer who can value them (tell them you need to know a value for insurance purposes to stop them going into 'rip-off' mode

)

Are you sure they're ivory? Bone is used often for that sort of thing and can easily be mistaken for ivory if you're not familiar with handling both materials. Ivory figurines are often slightly curved in the same arc as a tusk to avoid wastage, whereas bone figurines are more likely to be straight

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As far as I know it says Ivory on the boxes, but I haven't seen them to be sure.

We could donate them to a museum or art gallery! Thank you so much for the good idea!

Take them to an antique dealer. My mom had an ivory handled fish set that she inherited from some realitive, don't ask me who, that was dated 1910 and was made in India. I sold them to an antique dealer for $600. The way I look at it, I wouldn't buy anything made of ivory now, but that poor elephant died almost a century ago back in a time when they didn't understand conservation. At least go and see how much they are worth, and get it in writing.

Let me tell you, the dealer was practically drooling!

Originally Posted by Natalie_ca

That's an idea. Why not donate it to a museum or art gallery?

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That's what I was thinking.