CHESTNUT AND ANT
This carving took over two years to finish. Taken from the very tip of a piece of fossil Walrus tusk, the shape and inner core immediately suggested a chestnut. Indeed there would have been very little work to do on it had I not had other plans for it.........

One of my specialities is carving insects inside things as can be seen from the rest of this site, however I had reckoned without the peculiar qualities of the inner core of Walrus, which is granular like tapioca rather than having a grain that runs longitudinally along the tusk. Because of this it is all too easy to snap a leg off accidentally whilst carving inside. There are one or two techniques I use when working in the usual materials that are worse than useless with Walrus too.
Every few months I would take this piece down from its resting place and work on it for a few days before giving up in dismay and putting it back on its shelf. Its real size is only 1.75" x 1.25" (4.5 x 3cm); the thumbnails are enlarged approximately 5 times.