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Hi,

If possible, I would like to find out as much information as possible about this piece. It stands 26" tall and weighs 11lbs. It is a very detailed carving

Link :Ivory Photo Album

The work is modern, and it seems to have some western influence in the carving. Looking at the facial expression, this is a beautiful piece of art!

I like to see some close up on the surface such as the bottom of the statue to confirm the material.

Dear Doug

The only one female diety that have Amitabha Buddha in front of her hair bun is Kuan Yin Avalokitesvara, Goddess of the Compassion and Mercy.

Looking at the condition and craftmanship, it would be 20th century.

Very nice piece actually.

Have fun
Anita Mui

Hi Doug,
Based on your photos which are mostly not well lit and out of focus, I would say that it is more than likely that this statuette is not ivory. It is more likely a molded composite material (plastic).
If it was ivory you should be able to see grain in the material.
The last photo was the clearest, and the material does not seem to show any grain.

You can look closely at it and see if you can spot any grain, but it is doubtful.

Perhaps some closeup photos in outdoor light will reveal more, but it looks more like a molded piece.

Cheers
Gman

how about the engravings on the base for origin?

Hi Doug,
These resin polymer figurines are very nice as accent pieces, but like anything else that is made to look like something genuine, they can be a problem if mis-represented by a salesman.

As out of focus and grainy as your photos are, it won't do for me to try to list all of the reasons I think the statue is not made from ivory.

However a few of the quick ones would be the mold inconsistantcies (see the woman's comb at the very top) , the dull surface, and the irregular shape of the bottom of the statue, which should be very round or oval shaped.(see attached comparisons)

It will be better for you to search around on-line for photos of genuine ivory, and from there in person you can look at your statue and see what needs to be seen.

As I mentioned, you should see graining to the ivory which is called "Schreger lines", and also true ivory is generally found to be very shiny, whereas your piece appears to be quite dull which is usually the case with polymer resins.

As with many of these types of statues, the carvings are not sharp, and the details are a bit over-embellished, and at the same time lacking in detail cosistantcy.

I have included a couple of photos of a real ivory piece, and besides the shiny finish, and the Schreger lines, you will notice the carvings are all very sharp and precise, and the base is uniformly rounded. More points to compare to yours.
I will say that I like your statue a lot, and that I enjoy nicely done faux ivory statues for what they are, and they look great up on a fireplace mantle.

I have also included a link to a website which explains how to tell ivory from bone and plastic.

If you find that it is not ivory when it was supposed to be, you should probably attempt to get your money back. If you bought it at a reasonably low price, and it is worth that price to you as is, it is a nice piece.

Hope this helps
Cheers
Gman





URL Title :Ivory Identification link

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