What materials other than ivory do scrimshanders work on?
Scrimshanders work on a variety of materials other than ivory that do not endanger living species. They use naturally-shed antler from deer, elk and moose for unique collector pieces such as pen bases, letter openers, key rings, fireplace sets, cribbage boards, chandeliers and lamps, and more. Antler is tougher than ivory and is also used for knife scales, handles and other pieces that get a lot of wear. They also use tagua nuts, a vegetable ivory, to make small unique pieces of jewelry, small game board pieces, etc. Some sea shells, such as abalone, have been scrimshawed and horn, particularly cattle horn, is also scrimshawed. Horn scrimshaw is most often seen on black powder hunting horns. Some extremely hard woods, like ebony, can lend themselves to scrimshaw if properly sealed before work begins. Scrimshaw has even been done on the back of plastic dinner spoons, though these will probably never become “collectable.” While other materials may lend themselves to scrimshaw, it is ivor
