It is a commonplace that the first artificial plastics were used largely to imitate more
precious materials. The best example is the widespread imitation of ivory in celluloid products between the material’s introduction in about 1870 and its declining popularity in the second or third
decade of the twentieth century. On the basis of extensive examination of the Perlov Collection of
celluloid acquired by the National Museum of American History, this chapter challenges the characterization of this ivory appearance as simply an imitative effect. The ivory look became, in fact, the
hallmark of celluloid’s own appearance. When the plastic was used for a variety of purposes, from
pocket calculators to notepads to advertising signs, the ivory effect given to celluloid was meant to
enhance the value and recognition of the plastic, not to imitate or mimic the traditional material.