Marquette, MI (2/14/14) Over four thousand years ago the elephant that we know had a relative called the Woolly Mammoth. That’s what researchers said when they found carcasses frozen in ice in Siberia and Alaska.
When I got my hands on these photos of a mammoth tusk, I couldn’t help but be skeptical. Honestly, it looks like a piece of petrified wood.
From what I heard this piece of tusk was heavy, really heavy. And for the size that it is, it should be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. If it really is woolly mammoth tusk this could be a big find.
One reason I question the validity is the way the tusk is cracked. Not just the fact that it is, but tracking the lines doesn’t lead to the natural stress fractures one would expect. Also, notice the rings. That is said to be the growth layers…just like a tree. Suspicious.
Fun fact, Inuits used to carve on the tusks different designs of objects and scenes as a way of keeping history tied to nature. Not every tusk found has carvings, so its not immediate proof that this one is false, but I had hoped to see at least a crude tree or canoe.
Whether this really is a piece of tusk from a real woolly mammoth, these are some amazing pictures. This would make one spectacular mantle piece. But if its worth as much as it should be, I would be scared to display it for everyone to see.
What do you think? Is this really a chunk of history, or is it just a scrap of would-be firewood?