Ivory is an opaque, creamy white, hard, fine-grained, modified dentin that composes the upper incisor teeth of an elephant. Ivory is composed of curved layers of dentine alternating in shade, that intersect one another; the resulting lozenge-shaped structure is elastic and finely grained. The layers of a tusk are deposited from the central pulp, so that the innermost layer is the newest. Most commercial elephant ivory is obtained from the tusks of the African elephant, mainly from eastern and central Africa. (Most of the ivory of the western half of Africa is hard, whereas that from the eastern half is soft. Hard ivory is glassier in texture, harder to cut and more likely to crack than soft ivory.)
Fossil ivory, called odontolite, is a blue variety that is found in small quantities in the frozen soil of northern Siberia. Odontolite was produced by the mammoths of the Pleistocene geological epoch; its blue colour results from saturation by metallic salts. Carved ivory has been used for decorative purposes since the time of the ancient Egyptians. Small pieces of ivory are used for high-quality furniture inlays, chess pieces, and small jewellery. Larger pieces of ivory sometimes have been used in the manufacture of billiard balls, piano keys, and toilet articles.
During the late 1980s, as Africa's elephant herds declined, environmentalists led a world-wide effort to shut down the ivory trade; in 1989 the USA and the European Union banned all ivory imports. Tusks of several other animals such as hippopotamuses, narwhals, sperm whales, and walruses are commonly called ivory and have similar physical properties, and many plastic substitutes for ivory have been developed. Several ivory-like vegetable parts are also used in imitation of ivory; the ivory palm, for example, produces large, white, hard seeds, called ivory nuts, the endosperm of which is commonly known as vegetable ivory. In painting, ivory is a delicate colour deeper in tone than off-white, but not so deep as cream. Research Ivory
Mascled-armour is armour formed of small lozenge-shaped plates of metal fastened on a leathern or quilted tunic. The Norman soldiers in the Bayeaux tapestry are represented as wearing mascled-armour. Research Mascled-Armour
The Tank Mk V was a British tank of the Great War. The Mk V was the last of the lozenge-shaped tanks to see service in any number and was designed for the envisaged massive armoured thrusts of 1919, which never came about due to the end of the war. From 1918 the Mk V saw action with British and American forces and remained in service with the Canadian army until the early 1930s. The Mk V was powered by a Ricardo petrol engine providing a top speed of 7.4 kmh and a range of 72 km. The Mk V was protected by armour between 6 and 14 mm thick. A crew of eight manned the Mk V which was armed with two 6-pounder guns, one each side, and four Hotchkiss machine-guns. Research Tank Mk V
The Captain pot is a long, slender, elegant round chimney pot on a polygonal base with a lozenge patterned body, each lozenge containing a flowerdesign, and topped with battlements. Research Captain Pot
In architecture a quarrel is any small square or quadrangular member; for example a square of glass, especially when set diagonally. A small opening in window tracery, of which the cusps, etc., make the form nearly square. A square or lozenge-shaped paving tile. Research Quarrel
In heraldry, a fusil is a bearing of a rhomboidal figure named from its shape, which resembles that of a spindle. It differs from a lozenge in being longer in proportion to its width. Research Fusil
In heraldry, hatchment is a sort of panel, upon which the arms of a deceased person are temporarily displayed. It is usually on the walls of his dwelling and is lozenge-shaped or square, but is hung cornerwise. It was once used in England as a means of giving public notification of the death of the deceased, and information about his or her rank, whether married, widower, widow, etc. Research Hatchment
In heraldry, a lozenge is a diamond-shaped figure usually with the upper and lower angles slightly acute, borne upon a shield or escutcheon. The term also describes a form of the escutcheon used by women (with the exception in English heraldry of the Sovereign) instead of the shield which is used by men. The use of the lozenge in place of the shield for bearing the arms of a lady was introduced into English heraldry in the beginning of the 14th century. Research Lozenge
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Research Ivory
