Featured Asian Croc?

Hey all:

This fellow is a crocodile that I inherited from a great aunt, now long passed away. I know she traveled Asia in the 1950s, including Japan. This croc came in a box of mostly Japanese figures, some of which are ivory, and a couple of which could be resin or even plastic.

So: This looks like a carved walrus tusk. Did Japanese craftsmen create such things in the 1950s? I usually associate ivory crocodiles with Africa. Have you seen any from Japan as well?

This guy has a thin crack on his long side, but is in overall excellent condition. 11" U.S. from tip to tip and 2" at the widest. I have no idea on how to even value it, although houseguests "in the know" have bandied $500 about, but that was over 10 years ago. This is a family piece, so there is no desire to ever sell it.

 

I'd guess walrus.

 

Thanks King. My guess as well. Did Japanese craftsmen carve crocs in the 50s? Was it a tourist item?

 

It could be a gharial, a croc species from India:

And maybe a dugong tusk.

 

Thanks! I didn't know dugongs had tusks, so I learned something else today!

 

Dugong tusks usually have a slight peach coloured tinge, but can be lighter. It can be difficult to distinguish between the different types of ivory, you need to look at colour, cross section, etc.
This is classic dugong ivory, back of an 18th century keris hilt from Madura, Indonesia:

 

Wow, beautiful! I'm an instant convert to the world of dugong tusks!! I've never even seen one before.

My croc is....well....ivory in color, with a few creamier striations. The best pic is the third one down. Plus, the curvature makes me think Walrus, but I'm open to suggestions as to origin.

 

I've never seen a walrus tusk with that much curvature; and walrus has an oatmeal-looking core that I don't see here. I'd think whether croc or gavial/gharial it would be unlikely to be walrus. And the snout looks pretty wide for a gavial/gharial.
Carved ivory crocs are fairly common; I've got one myself. Most are South or East African and carved from warthog tusk; (compare http://carterscollectablesuk.co.uk/African-Warthog-tusk-crocodile-2
or https://www.chairish.com/product/119173/crocodile-carved-warthog-tusks-a-pair)
Some purport to be elephant or hippo.

( See some others at https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=crocodile carved tusk&qs=n&form=QBIR&sp=-1&pq=crocodile carved tusk&sc=0-21&sk=&cvid=40A9B4FA34F84755934AA7C063DB0D33)

 

Great info!

So if it's Japanese and with this much curvature, what animal do you think it came from?

 

I wouldn't think it was Japanese, even if your Aunt travelled there, and it was in a box of mostly Japanese items. I've never seen a Japanese carved ivory croc, and a Google search doesn't turn up anything like this other than ones carved in Africa.
She could have obtained it as a gift; in an import shop, who knows. But the style is extremely similar to crocs carved in Africa from warthog tusks; and that's what I would think it is. It does not look at all like anything carved from Walrus tusk that I have seen. I believe it is from the south or east parts of Africa, perhaps the Congo, and is most likely warthog.

 

Because of the extreme curvature, I agree the material is the tusk of some variety of wild hog. This gives an idea of the varying shapes & sizes of tusks from hogs docile enough to be farmed:
http://sugarmtnfarm.com/products/tusks/
No doubt there are fully wild species of tuskers with some truly fearsome dentition. The crocodilian has been carved preserving the shape of the material. Think elephant & marine mammal can be ruled out.

You write that your great aunt traveled Asia in the 50s. Seems reasonable that she would not have brought home mementos only from Japan, even if they all wound up in the same box. And since it was, after all, the 50s, there is no need to assume that the country of origin of the tusk is the same country where the carving was done. East Asia's desire for carved ivory is nothing new. Would expect that tusks from animals other than elephants also found their way to the workshops of China & environs, for making fakes or bargain knockoffs. If domestic supply was not sufficient for demand, surely more could be imported. Chinese wild boar in photos that came up in a quick search mostly seem to have had orthodontia, with this amusing exception:
http://www.earthweek.com/online/ew071109/ew071109g.html

The Chinese alligator does not seem to be a good match for this one. You might find the right profile on this site:
https://www.crocodilesoftheworld.co.uk/animals/chinese-alligator/

 

Wow, I'm impressed! That information on warthogs make sense. The third photo from all_fakes is almost identical to mine. From what all_fakes and Bronwen said, it looks as if warthog tusks may have been imported to east Asia, where they were carved into crocs, etc. thus giving the ivory its Chinese appearance.

Great job!

 

I think you've got it.
I must say, my first idea when I saw the croc, was of all of the carvings I've seen from DR Congo. We're next door to Belgium, and Congo used to be the private colony of the Belgian king (one of those strange things in world history). But the Asian box threw me off scent.

 

The Chinese have been making beautiful fakes of their own antiquities & the handcrafted work characteristic of other cultures for a very, very long time. Before I became consumed with cameos, I was in love with the Zuni carvings loosely referred to as fetishes. Learned that at the large mineral & rock show/sales events, the Chinese have been selling attractive, impeccably done carved stone pieces that look Native American, with prices that are so attractive one Zuni carver who was never very good & who had an alcohol problem began to buy them, sign them, & pass them off as his own.

Most of the netsuke & ojime I see being offered on eBay described as antique Japanese & - you know it must be genuine because - it's signed! Keep sending these sellers numbers for items that look just like their $250 one being offered for $15.99 with free shipping. They really are hand carved, they really do copy the best of the Japanese work, they are signed with the names of famous Japanese carvers, & they are cranked out by the shipping container load in China.

Since these postings become a repository for the collective knowledge of the community & become a reference resource for others, I am adding these 2 (sorry, not very good) photos of a Native American bobcat carved in walrus tusk.

 

LOL, dang!

 

Great info about Chinese forgeries. I knew some of them were good, but Jeez!

Well, with this abundance of information I'm feeling that this is a Warthog tusk, carved as a crocodile either in Africa or China. I've also learned that the Japanese have been well aware of crocs for centuries, as the saltwater variety is sometimes seen in the Sea of Japan. So it could be Japanese after all...perhaps.

I believe the Occam's Razor theory would say that it could have been carved in any of the above places, and simply tossed by whoever into a box of Japanese ivories at the end of my Great Aunt's life, when they were packing up her estate.

Anyway, wherever it was carved I think the value is about the same....maybe $100 or so. Great discussion!

 

Sounds likely, for sure.

Thanks; the first photo clearly shows the granular texture found in the core of walrus tusk; often described as "oatmeal-like."
This texture is a diagnostic for identifying walrus tusk cross-sections, which you'll often find being used as bases for Alaskan carvings. A pretty rare material for imports, due to various laws....though the Indonesians have in the past purchased Alaskan marine ivory illegally, shipped it to Indonesia for carving, then shipped it back to Alaska for sale as "Native carvings." It would be hard to believe, if it hadn't been documented by the US Fish & Game - resulting in prosecution.

 

This guy turned up on eBay, with a number of other pieces, offered by a seller who had bought up the contents of a defunct store, among which was a box with an assortment of carvings, about which they knew nothing. Think they were in Washington (state). I fell in love with this one & a bear that is also done in some sort of organic material. I showed the photos to the woman from whom I have bought most of my Zuni pieces, some of which are walrus teeth, & she IDed it as tusk. The carving is so minimal & it feels absolutely great in the hand, very smooth & hefty, beautiful butterscotch color. I have a couple of scrimshaw pieces I think also use thin slices of tusk.

 

So much information! Thanks.