WCO Explanatory Notes reproduced for reference. © World Customs Organization. Verify against official WCO publication.
96.01 Worked ivory, bone, tortoise-shell, horn, antlers, coral, mother-of-pearl and other animal carving material, and articles of these materials (including articles obtained by moulding). 960 1.10 - Worked ivory and articles of ivory 9601.90 - Other This headin relates to worked animal materials (other than those referred to in heading 96.0 ). These materials are mainly worked by carving or cutting. Most of them may also be moulded. k For the purposes of this heading, the expression " worked " refers to materials which have undergone processes extending beyond the sim Ie preparations permitted in the headin for the raw material in question see the Explanatory f 4otes to headin s 05.05 to 05.08). The eading therefore covers pieces o ivory, bone, tortoise-shell, horn, ant ers, coral, mother-of-pearI, etc., in the form of sheets, plates, rods, etc,,.cut to sha e (including square or rectangular) or olished or otherwise worked by grinhng, drilling, mil ing, turning, etc. However, pieces w&ch are identifiable as parts of articles are excluded fiom this heading if such parts are covered by another heading of the Nomenclature. Thus, iano-key plates and plates for insertion in butts of fiream-is fall in headings 92.09 and 93. 5 respectively. However, worked materials not identifiable as parts of articles remain classified III this heading (e.g., simple discs, plates or strips for inlaying, etc., or for subsequent use in the manufacture of piano-keys). i P t! % Provided they are worked or in the form of articles, the heading includes the following : (I) Ivory. Throughout the Nomenclature, elephant, hippo otamus, walrus, narwhal and wild boar tusks, rhinoceros horns and the teeth of all anima s are regarded as ivory (see Note 3 to Chapter 5). ( Bone, the hard solid parts of the bodies of many animals, worked almost soleIy by cutting. P (111) Tortoise-shell, obtained almost exclusively from turtles. Tortoise-shell, which is yellowish, brownish or black in colour, is very malleable and becomes highly ductile when heated; when cooled it retains the shape given to it. (IV) Horn and antlers, obtained from the foreheads of ruminants. (Horn-cores are not used as carving or moulding materials but almost exclusively in the manufacture of gelatin.) (V) Natural coral (i-e.,the calcareous skeletons of marine polyps) and agglomerated coral. (VI) Mother-of- earl, the lustrous, iridescent nacreous lining of certain shells; its surface appears to e undulated although, in fact, it is perfectly smooth. g (VII) Hooves, nails, claws and beaks. (VIQ Bone and similar materials obtained fiom marine mammals. (IX) Quills of feathers. (X) Shells of crustaceans and molluscs. The heading covers : (A) Worked animal carving materials. The carving materials mentioned in the heading are classified here provided they have undergone processes extending be ond cleaning or scraping, simple sawing to remove useless parts, cutting (sometimes fo lowed by rough planing) and, in some cases, bleaching, flattening, trimming or splitting. r Thus, tortoise-shell is excluded if it has not undergone processes extending beyond the straightening and surface-levelling of scales (this last operation is exceptional since unworked tortoise-shell is almost always presented in sheets of uneven thickness and with curved surfaces) (see the Ex lanatory Note to heading 05.07, Part )). The heading similarly excludes coral from which on& the outer crust has been removed (hes ing 05.08). f Also included are moulded products, of any shape, made from tortoise-shell scales, plates or claws, or from reconstituted materials obtained from powder or waste of any of the carving materials of the heading. One of the properties of tortoise-shell is that it can be joined together by heating without the use of any special binder; advantage is taken of this pro erty to obtain comparatively thick plates by uniting thin scales in layers, and to make artic es. A characteristic of horn is that it becomes soft when heated and can then be flattened or reduced to a asty consistency; it can, therefore, be worked by moulding in the same manner as tortoise-s ell. I' ! Polished or unpolished discs not having the character of button blanks (see the Ex lanatory Note to heading 96.06) and Jerusalem pearls, (i.e., irregular mother-of-pearl bead's, simply pierced, but not polished, graded or further worked) remain classified in this heading even if temporarily strung. (B) Articles of animal carving materials of the heading. This group includes : (1) Cigar or cigarette cases, snuff-boxes, powder-boxes, buckles, clasps, lipstick cases. (2) Handles or mountings for brushes, presented separately. (3) (5) Boxes of various kinds, cachou boxes, protective covers for watches. (6) Frames for pictures, paintings, etc. (8) Articles of religious use. (9) Crochet hooks and knitting needles. Paper-knives, letter-openers, book-markers. (10) Small ornamental articles (e.g., trinkets, carved articles other than those of heading 97.03). (1 1) Shoe horns. (12) Tableware such as knife-rests, small spoons and serviette rings. (13) Ornamental mounted horns and antlers (trophies, etc.). (14) Cameos and intaglios other than those constituting articles of jewellery. The heading also includes articles made £tom s ecial shells, and articles (e.g, tooth- icks and special tips for cigars) made from quills o feathers. However, the headmg exc udes quills simply cut to length and not further worked (heading 05.05) and quills prepared for use as fishing floats (heading 95.07). F f Articles overlaid or inlaid with animal carving materials are classified in this heading, provided the overla ' g or inlaying forms the main characteristic of the finished article. This may be so in t e case of wooden boxes, caskets, etc., overlaid or inlaid with, e.g., ivory, bone, tortoise-shell or horn. R" This heading also excludes : (a) Aaicles of Chapter 66 (e.g., parts of umbrellas, sunshades, walking-sticks, etc., for example, handles, stems and tips). (b) Framed glass mirrors (heading 70.09). Articles of animal carving materials, composed partly of precious metal or metal clad with precious metal, or of natural or cultured pearls, or preclous or semi-precious stones (natural, synthetic or reconstructed) (Chapter 71). Nevertheless such articles remain classified in this heading when the natural or cultured pearls, precious or semi-precious stones (natural synthetic or reconstructed), precious metal or metal clad with precious metal constitute only minor constituents (e.g., monograms, initials, ferrules, rims, etc.). (d) Articles of imitationjewellery (heading 71.17). (e) Cutlery or other articles of Chapter 82 with handles or other parts of carving or mouldin materials; however, such handles and other parts, when presented separately, remain classi led in this heading. B (f) Articles of Chapter 90 (e.g., binoculars; also fiames and mountings, and parts of frames and mountings, for spectacles, pince-nez, lorgnettes, goggles and the like). (g) Articles of Chapter 91 (e.g., watch and clock cases). Protective covers for watches remain, however, classified in this headmg. (h) Articles of Chapter 92, e.g., musical instruments and parts thereof (hunting horns, piano or accordion keys, pegs, bridges, etc.). (ij) Articles of Chapter 93 (e-g.,parts of arms). (k) Articles of Chapter 94 (e-g., furniture, lamp and lighting fittings). (1) Articles of Chapter 95 (toys, games, sports requisites). (m) Articles of headin s 96.03 (e.g., brooms and brushes and 96.04. Brush handles or mountings, when presented separate y remain, however, classified in is heading. f (n) Articles of headin s 96.05, 96.06, 96.08, 96.11 or 96.13 to 96.16 (e,g,, buttons and button blanks; fountain pens, pen- olders, etc.; smoking pi es, and pipe bowls, stems and other parts of pipes; cigar and cigarette holders and parts thereof; com s). % (0) Articles of Chapter 97 (e.g., original sculptures and statuary; collectors' pieces of zoological interest).
1.- This Chapter does not cover : (a) Pencils for cosmetic or toilet uses (Chapter 33); (b) Articles of Chapter 66 (for example, parts of umbrellas or walking-sticks); (c) Imitation jewellery (heading 71.17); (d) Parts of general use, as defined in Note 2 to Section XV, of base metal (Section XV), or similar goods of plastics (Chapter 39); (e) Cutlery or other articles of Chapter 82 with handles or other parts of carving or moulding materials; heading 96.01 or 96.02 applies, however, to separately presented handles or other parts of such articles; (f) Articles of Chapter 90 (for example, spectacle frames (heading 90.03), mathematical drawing pens (heading 90.17), brushes of a kind specialised for use in dentistry or for medical, surgical or veterinary purposes (heading 90.18)); (g) Articles of Chapter 91 (for example, clock or watch cases); (h) Musical instruments or parts or accessories thereof (Chapter 92); (ij) Articles of Chapter 93 (arms and parts thereof); (k) Articles of Chapter 94 (for example, furniture, luminaires and lighting fittings); (l) Articles of Chapter 95 (toys, games, sports requisites); or (m) Works of art, collectors' pieces or antiques (Chapter 97). 2.- In heading 96.02 the expression “vegetable or mineral carving material” means : (a) Hard seeds, pips, hulls and nuts and similar vegetable materials of a kind used for carving (for example, corozo and dom); (b) Amber, meerschaum, agglomerated amber and agglomerated meerschaum, jet and mineral substitutes for jet. 3.- In heading 96.03 the expression “prepared knots and tufts for broom or brush making” applies only to unmounted knots and tufts of animal hair, vegetable fibre or other material, which are ready for incorporation without division in brooms or brushes, or which require only such further minor processes as trimming to shape at the top, to render them ready for such incorporation. 4.- Articles of this Chapter, other than those of headings 96.01 to 96.06 or 96.15, remain classified in the Chapter whether or not composed wholly or partly of precious metal or metal clad with precious metal, of natural or cultured pearls, or precious or semi-precious stones (natural, synthetic or reconstructed). However, headings 96.01 to 96.06 and 96.15 include articles in which natural or cultured pearls, precious or semi-precious stones (natural, synthetic or reconstructed), precious metal or metal clad with precious metal constitute only minor constituents.