Elk ivory also called elk tush or bugler tooth is one of the rarest and most storied organic materials in American jewelry tradition. Each elk carries only two of these teeth, small vestigial tusks located in the upper jaw that are the evolutionary remnant of the long saber-like canines of the elk’s ancient ancestors. They are not antler, not bone they are true ivory, dense and smooth, and they have been collected and worn as adornment by the peoples of the American West for thousands of years.
The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks the fraternal organization founded in 1868 made elk ivory one of its most recognized symbols, and the tradition of setting these teeth in jewelry runs deep in Western American culture. Among hunting communities and families across the Rocky Mountain West, an elk ivory is not simply a material it is a record of a specific animal, a specific hunt, a specific moment in the high country. Passed down through generations, set in silver and worn close to the body, elk ivory carries personal history in a way that few materials can match.
The elk ivory in this piece was ethically sourced in New Mexico recovered from a legally harvested animal taken within the state, where elk populations are actively managed by the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish to maintain healthy herds across the mountain country of the Sangre de Cristo, Jemez, and Sacramento ranges. No animal was taken for its teeth. The ivory came from an elk that was already part of the harvest recovered with intention and respect for what it represents.
Each elk ivory is unique in color, shape, and surface character cream, ivory, tan, and warm gold in combinations that shift with age and the light. No two are the same. This one found its way to Taos, into silver, into a piece that carries the weight of the country it came from.
