Miles of Alaska
fossil ivory teeth shell claws bones of animal opal semiprecious stones raw materials art supplies for craft people artists
My mammoth ivory comes from Alaska or Siberia and most of what I get is about 40,000 years old. This ivory in tusk form is used for display. It polished up to be very beautiful . The pieces of ivory are used in artwork- suitable for pendants buckles artpieces knife handles inlay work scrimshaw and such. Because of it's age it has many degrees of quality. The worse is rotten and chalky- unsuitable for art but 'interesting' for display. The best is the 'bark' the outer enamel that sometimes separates and is extra hard and carries the best colors usually- and fetches the highest price. When inquiring it helps if you let me know what the use is intended so I can help you figure out what might work for you. Will you display it -carve it- paint it use it for knife handles- looking for unique- or size or solid?
Samples of fossil teeth
Fossil teeth are usually used as jewelry pendants. some would do for knife handles. Any would be a display. They are good items for medicine bags -Native crafts artifacts. they are hard- carve-able take a nice polish. Can be unstable and can crack so some care must be taken as with any ancient material. keep oiled.
Fossil Walrus Ivory. Various sizes and shapes. Selling by the pound or the piece. Price on this matrial varies a lot by quality and color -from $40 a pound to over $200 a pound--low on this material but that changes by the month inquire
$60 a pound scraps
$200 a lb as good as it gets
I specialize in cave bear teeth- probobly the best inventory in the country $50 to $130Feb 08 update- I'm expect to get some of these in April or May
While pictures load- something to read
Care of raw material-- If you are trying some if this for the first time keep some things in mind. 'Raw' is cheaper because it has not been treated- and might be dirty furry and needs 'something' done to it so it can be a finished product--and is why it is so much cheaper then 'finished'. Many times it need special care. Teeth enjoy cracking. They may need oil and or a finished product needs to be stabilized or bound in wire or something to stop cracking. Drillig a simple hole in a tooth is an art form (for example) You have a 90% chance of ruining your first one. Claws have an inner bone. I try to check but you must check and maybe glue the bone into the claw --this is your responsibility as the buyer of raw material. Some items may not be suited well for a certain purpose--be sure to inquire if unsure. Some items are brittle or heavy or hard to carve without care. You might be better off trying a sample piece. Ivory for example does not like water much so do not use a water drip to keep dust down while slicing it and want a refund because it warped and cracked! Keep ivory dry or use oil.Many material do not like to be heated when cut so must be cut slow- oil is usually better then water on most animal parts Pricing-- due to nature- all are not equal-- and how it is handled before I get it effects price as well as availability. A bad cold or snow year means the Natives have not got out trapping and I may not get offered lynx or wolf. Many animals have a natural population cycle and when they are in abundance I am offered more then I can buy and when scarce I do not have enough. This is just how it is- and price reflects this. You have to inquire about current price and availability since this is not factory produced--Nature and God still rule supreme in this business! History of the material -- I get these item from so many sources it is hard to get into- but usually I know and can tell you but more 'after you buy it' as I do not like to get into story time and no sale. If you want an item for 'sacred reasons' let me know and I will do my best to get you material with a source connection you might relate - accept. I'm a small enough business I know where my material comes from. In general I try to keep it 'natural' and clean by boiling or composting and not with chemicals (that matters to some people-I do it more for economics and it is just how I know how to do. ) Many-most of my raw materials and how I got in the business was from the surplus of my own art business. I get offered more then I can ever use and realize there are people who are not at the source and would pay for this so 'Hmm' a side business developed. Really I prefer to sell the finished art as there is more mark up For crafts-- Well there is a reason a finished wolf claw necklace is $30 but the raw claw is maybe $10. It looks easy to do but in reality it takes skill - tools knowledge. If you ask me how come it didn't arrive with that little thingy on top to hang it from-- I'm gonna tell you "cause then it's worth $30and not $10" (Da!) Internet customer-- Unlike a physical shop the internet attracts more variety of people. I get children with questions for school assignments. I get many people who do bazzars-flea makets and dabble in crafts but are not very skilled. I get Native Americans seeking ceremonial items. I get dealers who know 10 times what I do who sell around the world. I get some of the top knife makers in the country looking for handle material- and museums needing samples-artifacts etc. and people from other countries who do not have a clue what they are looking at. All these have to be addressed- and frankly all need a special language to communicate with them. so I encourage you to email and we can take it from there. Befoer we even talk I have to know what you know- and if you do not tell me I have to guess. I may have special items to tell you of 'under the counter' for special needs--or have a source for it. So anyhow hope the pictures have loaded!
Everything on this page is a raw material- there is no art for sale- This is the 'fossil' page
Laws on shipping and receiving of animal parts vary from state to state. Buyer assumes responsibility for knowing the laws of your state. Everything offered here is legal in Alaska.
Walrus Ivory- Fossil cabs
For artists- jewelry makers. Already made up polished cabs selling by the piece. Can send email picture of selection for your needs. These pieces $20 each. This material getting very limited- is thousands of years old. Very sought after.
Mammoth ivory rough for pistol grips or knife work
This is rough cut flat back for those who want to work it themselves to get the right colors for grips handles etc.
Tanana River- where much of the materials i get come from- usually from one of the many gold mines in the area (without getting specific--smile) I know the good places to look. Fossils are state regulated and fall under the 'minerals' act and can be taken from patent mine claims.
After finding a batch of prehistoric bones and ivory - one of the first steps is to hose it down and get all the mud off- before banding with clamps so they do not crack while drying--then store in a cool place in plastic - slowly exposing to the air so they dry slowly- which might take a year before I can offer them up as 'raw materials'.
Fossil shark teeth - These are great white and good quality for pendants. I have seconds, smaller ones and other type shark inquire
More materials! I have more then I can show- some items are in small supply but exotic. I sometimes get fossil whale teeth- lion claws. I have a good source for nice opals. I have amber with bugs in it. Let me know your interests.
Cave bear tooth --wolf bone chain opal inlay-custom cast sterling mammoth with copper tusks showing what can be done with the materials on this page
Cave bear skeleton showing how big they were 40,000 yeas ago! I'm wearing the necklace at the left made from the fang of one.
Cave Bear necklace-- skeleton
I pride myself in my reputation as a supplier of good legal materials. In general I am a hunter for food and have never trophy hunted. I got started supplying raw materials as a byproduct of my subsistence life I once lived (for 30 years) and much of what I supply is destined for village dumps as trash or has no local value. I got into this out of a sense of not liking to see the waste and to help myself and locals turn a by product into cash for people with no regular jobs. I have branched out since but the basic concept remains-- a respect for the land and what it gives us- and a desire to share the beauty through a part of the animal- often ancient.
Source of materials
Links to my other raw materials
Scroll down for fossil items
Some pictures are thumbnails to save time loading this page- click on thumbnail to see full view
Amber with bugs $10 to $100
Fossil wolf teeth
click here to go to my site directory with links to all my pages. Art - raw materials for sale- book- advice- tips-ordering- info- home page etc
Miles at Miles of Alaska
box 363
Nenana Alaska
99760
1-907-832-5442 miles@milesofalaska.net
Some pictures may take time to load Creating a web site is a compromise between showing you a lot of cool pictures--against how long it takes to load! Here is something to read while pictures load.
About myself and the business. I am a one man show. This is not some huge company. My role is most like a guru -shaman- advisor. I have a lot of interesting things all right- but more- I have 50 years of knowledge and sources for 'everything'. I tend not to supply large amounts of anything - but offer artists- collectors unusual items at a good price and materials most likely to connect directly to the land. I usually know where an item originated and many items have a personal story- similar to collecting antiques. As one person in Alaska I can not hope to compete with the large clearing houses who sell by the hundreds with many employees. Although I can come up with a large amount of local items like wolf and lynx claws. I'm not getting rich at this. It is more a labor of love- still in hopes of making a living at it. At 5 years old I was in the paper for a turkey I made of paper mache. I've always loved animal art and cool teeth and claws and fossils and such. I spent over 25 years alone in the Alaska wilderness trapping. homesteading and living a subsistence lifestyle learning about the animals and learning where the fossils are. It was natural to start dealing with local Indians and later meeting people all over with similar interests. This has grown into world wide recognition and connections all over the world. I'm considered by many--one of the best there is at what I do. I have a personal interest in making sure you get what you want. With this in mind I created an advise-how to page so help you select and take care of your material, click here to go to my how to page----> how to page
click on thumbnail pictures
old wood no name for this material-half between coal and wood- found with mammoth ivory great colors for knife handles - art inlays etc
Fossil walrus ivory sled runner- very old artifact brought to me by locals . I have assorted artifacts that come and go- inquire
This is a link to my ordering page that answers a lot of question about how to inquire, best time to contact me, why so many pictures have no price or shop cart symbol, methods of payment, issues and problems, and related topics
Book Two! 'Gone Wild' is out
Twice the length of book one,
The continuing story $28.50
Includes shipping in US
