Contemporary Elk Tooth Jewelry Isn’t Quite What You Would Expect
Elk ivory is the rarest jewelry component in the world. Often referred toas the “”pearl of the west””, elk ivory has been found among artifacts5,000 years old. Native Americans often used elk teeth as a decorative elementin jewelry and clothing. The first confirmed elk ivory ornaments in the U.S.were unearthed at the Fort Yates archeological dig in south central North Dakota,along the Missouri river, dating back roughly 530 years. Elk teeth are stillused in decoration today and can make a unique, one of a kind jewelry piece.
If you are imagining a string of teeth with holes drilled through them andstrung on a piece of leather, you haven’t seen a contemporary, well-madepiece of elk tooth jewelry. “”Elk teeth can be a gorgeous centerpiecefor rings, pendants, belt buckles, cuff links, bracelets, and more with stunningresults”” says Sarah Buckles Larner, an elk tooth and precious stonecustom jewelry designer in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. “”Just like atraditional jewelry setting using precious stones, you can use elk teeth withmetals like sterling silver, 14K yellow or white gold, or a combination ofthose metals to create a lovely piece.””
Elk hunting is big business in Colorado. Elk are abundant; therefore huntingseason yields plenty of material for a designer or elk tooth jewelry enthusiast.Sarah’s customers range from hunters with their own elk teeth to clientsthat just appreciate the unique style of an elk tooth pendant or ring. “”Ifa customer brings in their own elk teeth and they are not already cleaned,they are carefully boiled, cleaned, and then carefully polish of all the roughedges and buffed to a pearl-like finish. Then they are ready to use””
Once the elk ivory tooth is polished, the color and highlights are uniqueto each tooth. Depending on the shape and the polish, the colors range froma milky white ivory color to dark chocolate brown. When the teeth are polishedit may give you a better idea of the type of jewelry that you would like tohave created. You can use a single tooth to create a ring, a pendant or a moneyclip while a matched pair of teeth can be put in a belt buckle, a silver andgold bracelet or cuff links.