Nice to see this,....but why has this taken so long ? It's been illegal in the UK to trade anything made of ivory after 1947....
http://www.theecologist.org/News/news_round_up/2988033/france_bans_all_ivory_and_rhino_horn_trade.html
Really, Hilary? How does that assertion square with this article from the antiques trade gazette?
www.antiquestradegazette.com/news/2015/uk-ivory-ban-would-destroy-my-business/
Oh I think I see, anything made since 1947, not illegal to trade since 1947. Actually in France there has been a blanket ban since 1990 on buying and selling unworked ivory and only objects made before 1947 were exempt, just like in GB, I imagine it is multilateral CITES legislation. So actually the legislation is the same.
Hi Veronique,
Not my intention to 'get at France' here....My question is why has it taken so long to ban the trade in modern stocks of the stuff all over the world...Yes, I mean't any thing made since 1947, often referred to on antiques TV progs, in the UK.
Antiquities shouldn't be affected (not sure why the Antiques gazette are so concerned) and stuff in museums shouldn't be (very odd if they were), after all you can't turn back the clock and they are valued historical artifacts, destroying them would be like trying to re-write history, to what end ?
I recall that there is a museum in the hills around Dieppe which holds an important collection of Ivory....
Trading not holding is the illegal bit. The conservatives under DC made it a pledge to have a blanket ban on trade which will affect antiquities as well, which is what Segolene has gone for.
Well of course, that is bad news for traders in antiquities made of ivory.....I hope that it will be possible for museums to 'mop up' these objects...perhaps by allowing a tax advantage to holders if the objects are donated.
They will have to diversify and switch to other items with no ivory content.
I suppose it has had to be applied to all ivory, as there is probably a substantial trade in fake antiquities that uses the modern stuff....