Ivory fitted violin?

February 2, 2008 at 10:02 PM · I imagine the ivory pegs and tailpiece are heavy... and if they are fragile I would change pegs and tailpiece and save the ivory ones, just an idea.

February 2, 2008 at 10:26 PM · http://www.si.edu/mci/english/learn_more/taking_care/ivory.html Is a Smithsonian link on the care of ivory objects. I'm sorry I don't know how to embed a link in the message on this site.

February 3, 2008 at 02:59 AM · Don't try to cross any international borders with it.

February 3, 2008 at 08:32 AM · Funny you mention that, Andres. I was looking at a bow with a tortoiseshell frog last week, and mentioned to the dealer that I didn't think it'd be very practical for travelling. He assured me that one shouldn't have any problems with 'antique' tortoiseshell or ivory - it's just new stuff that's in danger of being confiscated at borders. Anyone have experience with this?

February 3, 2008 at 09:45 AM · Experience is neither here nor there. The current level (or lack) of enforcement cannot be depended upon. What matters is the law itself, which is a real hairball to untangle.

To get a rough idea what's involved, have a look at what nearly happened recently with pernambuco. The CITES ban on finished pernambuco objects would have required people to get permits to travel with their bows. The problem was averted at the last minute by a specific exception for instrument bows--for now.

The finished-object ban is already in place for ivory and tortoise shell, and although there is the 'antique' exception you may have to submit documentation to and get a permit from Fish & Wildlife to get past a customs officer bent on enforcing the CITES rules--for each country you enter.

Here's the last go-round on this topic, complete with a bit of silliness in the middle for entertainment purposes. :-)

http://www.violinist.com/discussion/response.cfm?ID=11443

February 3, 2008 at 02:42 PM · Thanks for the link to the ivory care page, Bob.

February 3, 2008 at 10:08 PM · Likewise, Bob. that's a great resource.

Question: The Smithsonian page says that ivory "darkens in contact with the skin or oils."

I have an ivory frog which is in fine condition, but I haven't used it personally because it's on a broken bow. At some point I will have it mounted on a good stick, and I am now concerned about finger oils causing it to darken.

Is there anything that one can coat ivory with, to preserve it, without altering the look? Laquer, perhaps, or something similar, as is done with brass & sometimes silver?

February 3, 2008 at 10:12 PM · I'm of the opinion that the patina ivory eventually acquires only adds to its beauty. My wife has some very old ivory bracelets which have turned interesting shades of tan over the decades.

I'm not aware of anything you can puy on it to keep it sparkling white, short of brushing with Crest (tm).

February 3, 2008 at 10:19 PM · Ivory is a souvenir from a car wreck. Throw it away.

February 3, 2008 at 10:15 PM · BTW, Amber,

The answer to part of your original question is, I think, that those fittings were likely added by an owner, not by the original maker (unless it is a Baroque violin.) Thus, it would not help determin the violin's origin.

Are you sure those fittings are ivory, and not bone? A solid ivory tailpiece? That's certainly possible, but mighty rare, I think. ANd note my question, above: If the pegs are ivory, they would (I assume, from the Smithsonian webpage) be very dark by now. How do they look?

February 4, 2008 at 02:37 AM · The ivory is all yellowed now, pretty evenly, except that the tailpiece is darker near the (newly installed) chinrest. There are fine lines running lengthwise along the tailpiece, and on some of the pegs. The luthier and my teacher said it is ivory. As far as I know, whatever it is was on the violin at least since it was brought over. But I don't know anything earlier about it than my grandfather's grandmother had it when she came to America. It is mighty pretty and has the very sound that I wanted when I took up violin, so where-ever it came from, I am glad to have it. :) Thanks for the info!

February 4, 2008 at 06:40 AM · Ivory? Was your violin owned by a rap star or a pimp?

Most violin owners should use high-quality ebony, rosewood, or boxwood. Search on the internet and you can find them for a few dollars each. (Highest quality ebony would be my choice, unless you have a tailpiece of a different type of wood, and then you maybe should choose pegs that match.)

Then again, your violin may be a unique case that maybe requires a second look. Who is the maker? What does the label say? What does the wood look like on the back and sides and top?

February 4, 2008 at 06:15 PM · Ivory pegs are not that uncommon. I've seen quite a few sets, but they are usually relegated to the display cases for curios in the showrooms of violin shops. They don't work very well because the hardness is so different than the maple of the head and they act like burnishers on the wood. High end Martin guitars from the end of the nineteenth century had ivory pegs and sometimes bridges. Bone, lighter than ivory, was also used. I saw a very old violin tailpiece in Germany made from bone in the Germanishes Museum. The early use was probably recycled ivory from artifacts and the later pegs were often inlayed and etched and were likely "bling". Ivory pegs may have been thought of as a match to ivory bow frogs. That would be one heavy tailpiece. If you remove it (recommended for many reasons)I would be interested in what it weighs.