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Archaeology/Tusk?
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Question
I have what I think is a tusk and at first glance I thought was a Wooly Mammoth ivory tusk but a closer look at the grain it does not seem to match a Mammoth. This was given to my wife's Grandfather 65 years ago when he worked in Alaska. It has pencil writing on it that is hard to read but 2 of the words are White & Yukon. Could you offer any assistance is finding out what this is. We have been pondering it for years.
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Hi Rod,
It does appear to be a tusk. It has the right shape and the longitudinal ridges that help to identify it. It should also have concentric rings at the growth end as tusks are teeth and continue to grow through the life of the beast. As to what type of tusk this is, it is very hard to identify based on this one photo. If you would kindly send me some additional ones as follows:
one each of both ends
one close up of one of the lighter colored bands
one close up of a dark colored band
and if you can, the pencil writing.
Also when you send me these pics, also put a ruler in front of the pic so that I get a sense of scale/size.
You can send this to my direct email of rsalier@hotmail.com
This may be Mammoth, Mastedon or something else. It looks like a fossil tusk but its hard to tell. I can tell you that you should keep it in a safe place, don't try to sell it as it could be confiscated - it is illegal to trade in ivory, even fossil ivory - and it may be quite valuable.
Once I have the additional pics, it may be able to identify the species and tell you more about what you have.
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Ralph Salier
Expertise
Archaeologist for the last 30 years. Norh American generalist and Hopwell culture/Red Ocher culture specifically. Lithics Expert and Ground Stone tools.
Experience
Past/Present clients
Numerous museums in US and Canada. Several University Anthropology Departments.
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