Bone Buttons

[subaluba]

I am green behind the ears. Can anyone tell me how to tell if a button is bone? I can't seem to keep a new button off my teeth but, I don't know what to look for. Are a lot of bone buttons the ones with the larger holes in them? To tell the truth almost everything I know about buttons is from what I see looking at buttons on e bay. That is a little scary. Sue

[buttonsoldbuttons]

Bone buttons have a grain in them. They are almost always an off white color and they are usually what are called underwear buttons because that is how they were used.

[buttonsoldbuttons]

Here are some observations. I am not certain of anything so please correct me if I am wrong. I have some sewing implements I know I have at least bone and plastic I think some of them may be Ivory. The bone ones have a very defined grain. They are polished but they do not have the shine the others have and they do not feel as smooth as the others do. The Plastic ones have a seam which is a dead give away but not all plastic has seams so I looked at it under my magnifier to see if I could tell any other differences. The plastic ones have no grain, they are very shiny and they are somewhat translucent. The ones I think might be ivory are also very shiny but not as shiny as the plastic and they are not translucent. They have no detectable grain though one of them has some thing of a grain but not nearly as defined as the bone and may be scratched from use. One of them is broken off at the tip and when I look, the end of it looks like miniature tapioca. I don't know a better way to describe it. They all have marks consistent with having been turned on a lathe which the bone and plastic do not have. I will try to take some pictures and post them in my photo album I finally got a good camera but I don't know how good of a close up I can get with it.

[svengali]

If you find a grain pattern you probably have ivory. Ivory is tooth enamel built up in layers. Bone will have a texture to it most often from wear and use. If there are any dark flecks in the material it's probably bone. A "tapioca" looking figuring in the material might indicate ancient ivory such as mammoth and is a real special find. Celluloid was developed which mimics ivory in graining but will usually be a thin sheet type so it isn't too difficult to tell it's a synthetic material rather than the real thing. Bone and ivory are usually not very shiny although ivory can become glossy with years of handling due to contact with hands and skin oils. -Carol C-

[antlercarv]

On my about me page (http://members.ebay.com/aboutme/antlercarv) I have a link called: Ivory info and laws, that gives info on various ivories and ivory substitutes and how you can identify them. Bone may or may not have a visible grain. Ivory may or may not have visible grain. If you see a cross-hatch design, in the side (thin) part of the button, you may have ivory or fossil ivory. The cross-hatch is called Schreger lines. If the button has visible porosity along the back of the button, it is probably bone. Send me a picture, and I will give my opinion. I have carved hundreds of pieces of bone, antler, and fossil ivory.