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For ivory, you would essentially have to grow a tooth in vitro for less than $1500, retail. Technologically, we're not there yet.
by matthewmarkus 10y ago
For ivory, you would essentially have to grow a tooth in vitro for less than $1500, retail. Technologically, we're not there yet.
- freehunter 10y agoCan you prove that ivory is ivory? Why not ceramic or plastic or something that feels like ivory but isn't?
- yyhhsj0521 10y agoA simple method would be to burn it. If it smells like when you burn fingernail, it probably is ivory.
- truth_sentinell 10y agoHave you ever burned a fingernail?
- matthewmarkus 10y agoBurn tests, as yyhhsj0521 points out, are done. If the object is made of keratin, it will smell like burning hair. I've never burned ivory, but I imagine it would also give off a unique smell (e.g., think drilling in a dentist office). Of course, as biotech advances, DNA tests and the like will be cheap and prevelant, and those will be used to establish authenticity. There have been some substitutes developed for ivory, but they're readily identifiable. These substitutes include the tagua nut [1] and nitrocellulose plastic [2]. [1] http://animals.oreilly.com/the-other-ivory/ http://animals.oreilly.com/the-other-ivory/ [2] http://io9.gizmodo.com/the-earliest-plastic-billiard-balls-had-a-habit-of-expl-1705491374 http://io9.gizmodo.com/the-earliest-plastic-billiard-balls-h...