# How much is ivory worth?



## Hannibal Barca (Oct 22, 2004)

The only references to ivory I can find in D&D is under the art tables in the DMG on p 55 for a carved bone or ivory statuette (which doesn't seem realistic to have bone and ivory of equal value), and in the FR Campaign Setting book where it lists ivory as one of the lower end gems in the 4d4 gp category. I'm not sure about translating ivory values from todays real world prices which run at $5.00 per lb which is down from its heyday in the 70's when it fetched up to $10.00 a lb. Anyone have any suggestions   on this?


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## Hannibal Barca (Oct 23, 2004)

Bump.


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## Ogrork the Mighty (Oct 23, 2004)

I checked the Arms & Equipment Guide and the Draconomicon but, surprisingly, neither lists a value for ivory.

edit: Found something. The Enchiridion of Treasures (p.69) lists ivory as 40 gp/lb (hardness 5, 10 hp/inch). It is described as common in areas where elephants and walruses are present, but rare elsewhere.


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## Chimera (Oct 23, 2004)

Ogrork the Mighty said:
			
		

> The Enchiridion of Treasures (p.69) lists ivory as 40 gp/lb (hardness 5, 10 hp/inch). It is described as common in areas where elephants and walruses are present, but rare elsewhere.




Which only goes to show you the problems with the "value" of a gold piece.  $5-10 per pound real world versus 40gp/pound in D&D.

Assuming a gp value of $50 real world, one would have to say that Ivory costs 1-2sp (book conversion rates) per pound.  Of course, that is probably 'at source', with prices 3-4 times higher where ivory is rare.

One could assume that ivory is more expensive than this due to greater difficulty in obtaining (ie, no modern weapons and poaching) and a host of other things, raising the price to perhaps 2-5 gp per pound, depending on rarity and demand.

But 40gp/pound seems like one of those "1gp = 1 dollar" conversion ideas.


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## Cergorach (Oct 23, 2004)

It kind of depends on when you note the price and where, see the following link:
http://www.ccds.charlotte.nc.us/History/Africa/save/browning/browning.html
It ranges from $90 to $1.35 per pound, and that's in the last half century. Half a millenium ago i would imagine that it was a lot more expensive.


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## Ogrork the Mighty (Oct 23, 2004)

I don't think you can compare ivory/gold prices of today with ivory prices in D&D. If you want to do that, there's a whole lot of things that need changing.


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## Merova (Nov 7, 2004)

*Nyambe*

Hi all!

In the _Nyambe_ campaign setting, ivory is listed under trade items, with a value of 3 gp for 1 lb. However, it notes that the weight of a single tusk can vary widely, from as little as 10 pounds to over 100 pounds.

Moreover, the price probably reflects the availability of ivory within the campaign setting. Elephants aren't quite as uncommon in Nyambe-tanda as they are in the typical fantasy campaign setting. 

Hope that helps!

-Olivia


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## Tonguez (Nov 7, 2004)

Hannibal Barca said:
			
		

> The only references to ivory I can find in D&D is under the art tables in the DMG on p 55 for a carved bone or ivory statuette (which doesn't seem realistic to have bone and ivory of equal value),




Bone, Horn and Ivory are essentially the same thing and worked in the same manner. Remember also that bone isn't just the hip bone of a cow. For instance Whale Bone (primarily from the jaw of sperm whales) when treated properly is almost as hard as iron.

Also Ivory are essentially overgrown teeth and in a DnD world where MANY creatures have tusks/horns/back spikes etc would Ivory from Elephants and Walrus be all that more special than say Griffon claw or Unicorn Horn. And what about Tarrasque or Dragon Ivory? 

hmm could be interesting


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