Vendor Sale 1800’s Old West Ivory Poker Chip Set (2 Viewers)

[TRKingChips]

1800’s Old West Ivory Poker Chip Set
Scrimshawed with the letter “ S “ on
both sides of each chip .
240 ivory chips in total .
80 chips with a plain border
80 chips with a red border
80 chips with a gold border
EACH CHIP is individually scrimshawed by hand
Includes the wood storage case .
——————————————————
$9600 Total Price includes shipping / insurance
Shipping Terms - CONUS only
Payments Accepted : PayPal F & F

 

[Seeking Alpha Social Club]

Well crap...I love these. Just a little too broke.

GLWS!!

 

[Brookston]

Try and find a guy to do some decent scrimshawing these days.

 

[ChipEnvy]

Those are in crazy good shape. I love ivory chips and want just one (I'd never ask to break a set though). Can you post a close up of just one of the chips?

 

[TRKingChips]

Those are in crazy good shape. I love ivory chips and want just one (I'd never ask to break a set though). Can you post a close up of just one of the chips?

Sure - I would be happy to post some close-up
photos of the elephant ivory chips .
Give me about 15 minutes or so …
They are just exceptional chips - IMHO …

 

[Bad Toad]

Last initial is S, but I’d have to sell my car. Lol

 

[TRKingChips]

Attached are close-up photos of all 3 chips .
If you look closely - your can visibly see the
cross-pattern in the chips - which should be
there in all the older elephant ivory chips .
Each one of the borders ( red and gold ) is
also individually colored by hand - one chip
at a time . When you scrimshaw chips by hand -
they will all look similar - but no two chips will
be 100 % identical .

 

[ChipEnvy]

You can really see the beauty of them with the closeup shots. The cross pattens is what I think really brings out the beauty of these chips. It sucks that they are from elephants, but they are beautiful.

 

[TRKingChips]

Possibility of a “ group buy “ ? ? ?
There are 80 sets of the 3 chips . . .
Must be 80 PCF members who would
like to own a 3 piece set of these ivory chips .
Just saying …..

 

[ChipEnvy]

I'd be in for a set at $120.

 

[CrazyEddie]

This is such a beautiful set. I wish I could justify the purchase.

It would be a shame for the set to get broken up. A playable set of ivories is incredibly rare. I can't afford it, but maybe someone can...

Good luck with your sale!

 

[moechar]

Wow!! Would anyone be able to describe how these feel just for curiosity’s sake??

 

[CDC]

Wow, nice!

 

[CrazyEddie]

Wow!! Would anyone be able to describe how these feel just for curiosity’s sake??

I have a few ivory chips and they feel magnificent. Completely unlike clay chips, and not as practical to play with in an actual poker game as clays - they're lighter and they're very smooth. But the way they feel and sound is a real delight. It's a bit like handling polished stone, except they're lightweight instead of heavy. Still very solid, though. The way they clack and clatter against each other, the sound they make as the slide past each other, is very distinctive; you can just tell that they're a natural material.

 

[surfik]

S stands for Surfik.... Unfortunately no international shipping..

 

[FDLmold]

S stands for Surfik.... Unfortunately no international shipping..

Despite the fact that trading in ivory is legal if the ivory is old enough, like these chips, I can’t imagine the customs and paperwork and bureaucracy required to do so with an item like this.

Beautiful chips.

 

[Nuhockey]

These things are sweet. I'll have to make my own now I guess because of the price. I'll have to tell my African hunting guide for my October trip we're going hunting for Elephants instead of the White Horned Rhino's and Lions.

 

[drtork]

What a set and with history to imagine

 

[CrazyEddie]

These things are sweet. I'll have to make my own now I guess because of the price. I'll have to tell my African hunting guide for my October trip we're going hunting for Elephants instead of the White Horned Rhino's and Lions.

Don't bother hunting! Go digging instead!

Melted permafrost reveals more woolly mammoth tusks than ever​

Enter mammoth ivory. The sale of this material is legal and has been increasing steadily.

Mammoth ivory is generally found during the summer months when the tundra melts. The ground then freezes over again for the rest of the year.

But with global warming, more parts of permafrost are now melting to reveal ancient mammoth tusks faster than before. This has caused a 'gold-rush' for mammoth ivory.

Siberian locals have hurried to sites where mammoth fossils are usually found, to recover tusks that could change their lives forever - for better or worse.

Digging for mammoth ivory is a dangerous task. It requires deep excavation into the hard ground and perilous journeys into mosquito-ridden caves.

To retrieve the tusks, a water pump is used. This often disturbs the earth in the vicinity, risking a collapse or flood at any moment. Serious injury and death are not uncommon on such jobs.

But if a mammoth tusk is found, it could mean financial freedom for a family. One tusk in good condition could sell for thousands of pounds.

 

[roofingman2]

Do you think I could get gear to make me some red eyeball overlays? It would make a great Kraken ivory chip set lol. Seriously though those are cool

 

[DrStrange]

I wouldn't feel good about sending these through customs anywhere in the world. Ivory trade is illegal. There is an exception for vintage ivory but you need some good documentation for that.

Ten grand worth of vintage Ivory riding on how some random customs official thinks about the set would make me sick. Not sure if there is any real hope of appeal if it gets taken as illegal ivory. Maybe there are there criminal penalties too.

Even if you flew here and carried them home there is still the "getting through customs" thing after you get through airport security.

Nope, too many bad things can happen. These chips are staying here.

Wish they were coming my way, but it isn't to be -=- DrStrange

 

[surfik]

What a set and with history to imagine

Not necessarily... Condition indicates that it was not used very often

 

[TRKingChips]

Bump !!!!!

 

[warma]

Would customs even think they’re ivory?

 

[TRKingChips]

Bump !!!!!

 

[philhut]

These things are sweet. I'll have to make my own now I guess because of the price. I'll have to tell my African hunting guide for my October trip we're going hunting for Elephants instead of the White Horned Rhino's and Lions.

I was honestly having the discussion at work yesterday. We were discussing environmentalism....which is see more as a "keep it off my lawn and feel good" ideology than actual protectionism for the greater good to a massive extent. An example I used was the idea of forcing conservation of wild elephants through NGO's and lobbying to other nations.....Sounds great but in some of these nations these policies result in wild elephants destroying crops and property. In North America our ancestors shot most of the cougars, wolves, bears etc that would have otherwise harms their livestock/property/families for generations forward. Such policies directly impact other people. My solution is farming of those same elephants, relocating animals to farms would be a prime way to establish these farms.... I know how many people a moose can feed, I can only imagine how many people could be fed by an elephant.

 

[TRKingChips]

Bump !!!!!

 

[nezara]

I think you need a cites certificate to sell these in the us. I'm not even sure of the legality of the website that lists then for sale in the us.

 

[CrazyEddie]

These can probably be sold within the US, within the state or between states, for most but not all states, without requiring paperwork. I am not a lawyer and this is not a legal opinion.

Here's the relevant page from the US Fish and Wildlife service: https://www.fws.gov/international/travel-and-trade/ivory-ban-questions-and-answers.html

Here's the relevant information. Note that there are separate regulations for Asian elephant ivory items but that they are similar:

You do not need a permit, but you need to be prepared to provide evidence that the item qualifies for the exemptions "if asked". The evidence that the item qualifies for the exemption can take various forms:

I suspect that, if asked, an item such as the one being offered for sale here could be readily established as meeting the qualifications for an exemption simply based on its provenance and obvious appearance as would be known to any expert in the field. I also suspect that no owner, seller, or buyer will ever be asked.

For what it's worth, a substantial number of ivory poker chips were sold at the Eisenstadt Estate auction by Potter and Potter in early 2021. I purchased a few of them. At no point did the auctioneers offer or require any paperwork, and at no point has any legal authority asked me for any paperwork or other evidence regarding the legality of the sale or purchase of these chips. Potter and Potter conduct auctions of antiquities from the gambling trade on a regular basis, including other ivory items such as dice; I assume that they know what's necessary to remain legal - but of course one should hesitate to make assumptions when dealing with the law.

 

[TRKingChips]

Robert Eisenstadt was a friend of mine . I had
known Robert for more than 30 years before
his passing . We traded ivory chips for many
of those years . I will miss him .