Ivory Ban - Change For Musical Instruments?

[Alex West]

In my UK newspaper yesterday was a short article under a "United States" banner:

 

"Two bagpipers have forced a rethink of the ban on ivory after customs agents impounded their pipes as they returned from a competition in Canada. US law prohibits importing ivory taken after 1976 and the bagpipes containing the material were older, but were siezed anyway. The Fish and Wildlife Service said musical instruments would now be exempted."

 

The short piece doesn't answer all the questions that might arise, but it appears that US customs at least are relaxing the rules. I wonder if this applies to other previously proscribed materials?

 

Alex West

[Stephen Chambers]

I hope that's correct and becomes general - I've not felt able to take instruments from my collection out of the country to show anyone, for talks, lectures or exhibition purposes, since it was introduced, seeing that so many antique free-reed instruments have ivory components - whilst it must have caused problems/concerns for lots of people who play older instruments, seeing that its use was so common for many things that we have plastics for today.

[Geoff Wooff]

If this is true it will make my life much easier too. I have lots of customers in the USA, and although I no longer use Elephant Ivory, even from Antique tusks, there are plenty of earlier examples of my work which do include this material and some of those instruments do cross international borders often enough, causing the usual trepidation.

Edited May 3, 2015 by Geoff Wooff

[d.elliott]

Will Q at Button box has been posting about this on FaceBook, the information is true, there will be exemptions for small pieces of ivory on old musical instruments, but it is only at proposal stage and will take about 3 or 4 months to become effective. This is only the US, it does not mean that western Europe is necessarily going to follow suit.

 

If, however, we repairers do too gooder job of restoration and the instrument does not look as old as it is, then you may still get stung!. Restorers beware!

 

Dave