Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 11.djvu/76

IVORY. in consequence of their great beauty as a ma- terial for ornamental manufactures, and even works of fine art. Ivory is froiiuoiitly mentioned in the Old Testament. Solomon luid a tlironc of ivorj' and gold. The Egyptians and Assyrians made much use of this material in ornamental work. With the Greeks it became a most im- portant material, and by the hands of the sculp- tor Pliidias a statue was prodiced of the Olympian Jupiter of such marvelous lu'auty and imposing majesty that it was considered a mis- fortune to die without having seen it. The pupils of Phidias made many of these colossal images (chrj'selephantine statues), the bodies being in ivory and the dra|)ery in gold. It was also extensively used by the Komans. who were supplied from .frica, and by them its use was diffused over the whole of Europe. During the Renaissance ivory was much used for inlaid work in furniture, and the art of carving it was brought to a high stale of skill. Caskets, statu<'ttes, mirror-cases, chess-men, and many oilier articles were ma<le of this material. The town of Dieppe in France has had its ivory factories since the fifteenth century. -t present the demand for i^ory is increasing, owing to tlio great taste and skill of some of the artists who work in this material, and, as the supply in- creases but very slowly, it is likely to become very costly. Ibe art of working in ivory doubt- less had its origin in India, where it has ahv.ays been a nuieli valued material. In China and Japan, especially the former country, the deco- rative value of ivory is highly prized, and an infinite care and patience are .shown by the Chinese in his carding on this material. In Europe and America, however, ivory has many uses and a very high commercial value, outside the realm of the fine arts. It is manu- factured princi])ally into billiard-balls, piano- keys, combs, knife-luuidles, and numerous fancy articles. Ivory is dillieult to cut, requiring the hardest and sharpest tools, but it is easily sawed or filed. Large plates of veneer are obtained by cutting a spiral shaving roiuid the tusks with what is known as a 'reciprocating saw.' It is polished with various powders. Every scrap of material is saved in the manufacture of ivory, the scraps, shavings, and dust being converted into ivory black or artists' pigments.

The tusks of the African elephant furnish at once the greatest and best parts of the ivory of commerce, veiy little now coming from India. African tusks sometimes reach a length of 9 feet and weigli 1(10 pounds or more. Those of the Indian elephant are smaller, averaging under oO pounds. Tusks of extinct mammoths have been found 12 feet long and weigliing 200 pounds. Africa exports about 1.7(S4.0on pounds of ivory annually. the product being distrilnited as follows': Zanzibar, 441.000 piJiinds: Niger territorii-s. 106,- 000 pounds: (Ja boon, Lagos, etc., 105,000 pounds; Mozambique. 220.000 pounds; Loanda and Ben- guela. 221.000 pounds: Cape Colony. 110.000 pounds: Egy7it, 331.000 pounds: Ked Sea Coast, 110.000 pounds. The principal markets are Lon- don. Liverpool, and Antwerp.

IVORY,. The fruit of a h;ind- sonie palm. Phi/tehphns Murrocarjio. wbieh glows in the Peruvian Andes, on the banks of the river ^Vfagdalena, and in other parts of South Amer- ica. The stem is short and procumbent, but from its crown is developed a magnificent tuft of light-green pinnated leaves, which rise like immense ostrich-feathers to a height of from 30

THK IVOnV-NPT PALM. to 40 feet. Tlic tlo«ers are on a crowded spadix, and have neither calyx nor corolla. The fruit, which is as large as a man's head, consists of si.x or more four-celled aggregated drupes, and a, NUTS IN busk; b. a «heli>ei> nct. contains numerous somewhat triangular nuts as large as a hen's egg. The kernels of these nuts, called corro^~<> mils in eoiiiiiierce, are so hard and white, and resemble ivory so greatly, that the name vegetable ivory is particularly ai)[)li cable. They have of late come into extensive use with turners in the manufacture of buttons, um- brella-handles, and small trinkets.

IVORY, ( 17n.'-)-1842). A Scotch mathematician, born at Dundw, and educated at the l^niversity of Saint Adrews. where he exhibited special protieicncy in mathematics, and graduated M.A. in 1784. " In 17S(!. after further study at Edinburgh, he abandoned the theological career for which he was pre|iariiig. taught in the Dundee Academy for three years, and from 1780 to 1804 engaged in commercial ]uirsuits as manager and partner of a flax-spinning mill. In his leisure hours, however, he continued bis mathematical studies; became known by learned contributions to the Royal Society of Edinburgh; and in 1804 received the appointment of professor of mathematics in the Royal Military College, then at Marlow. Buckinghamshire. He retired in 18 IS on a pension which was augmented in 1831, when he was kniglited. His essays and memoirs, published from 1796 to 1842. in th<? Transactions of the Royal Societies of Edinburgh and London, evince remarkable and acute analyt-