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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Bronwen, post: 347611, member: 5833&quot;]One of the things I did before questioning whether a surface had to be rounded to show crosshatching was to examine the biggest piece of ivory I own, carved in a whole cross-section of tusk.&nbsp; It has a flat back &amp; plenty of chubby cheeks, although no sleeves, and is getting to make regular appearances in various threads.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]117359[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>True, the grain in the flat background is nearly all straight. All sorts of grain on the putti (some of the little lines visible are tiny fissures in the surface that have picked up grime), but no Schreger lines anywhere that I could find, looking with magnification by a sunny window at surfaces at all different angles.&nbsp; The only part of the whole piece where there is any suggestion of crosshatching is around the edges, in the outermost layer.&nbsp; Yet there is no question the piece is genuine.</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="https://www.realorrepro.com/article/Ivory-genuine-fake--confusing" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.realorrepro.com/article/Ivory-genuine-fake--confusing" rel="nofollow">From Real or Repro</a>:</p><p><br /></p><p>The key feature to identifying elephant ivory is a unique pattern of crosshatching that appear in cross sections of elephant tusk. These lines, actually rows of microscopic tubes, are known as Schreger Lines; where they cross form Schreger Angles. Schreger Lines have never been duplicated in artificial plastics or resins. Schreger Lines <i>must be present</i> to qualify a pieces as elephant ivory. <b>The lines are most easily seen in the bases of figures and anywhere cuts are made at right angles to the grain.</b> [emphasis mine]<b></b></p><p><b><br /></b></p><p>and, about determining elephant or mammoth by measuring angles:</p><p><br /></p><p>Use the <i>outer Schreger Angles</i> (closest to the outside edge) only for this test. Do <i>not use</i> Schreger Angles in the center of the tusk. Measure at least <i>five angles</i> to get a true average.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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