Other uses found were cane and umbrella handles,pipes, mah-jongg tiles,sewing needle cases and the fine art of scrimshaw. Religious figurines were carved as were many toys. In the late eighteen hundreds up through World War II this ivory nut was used to make some of the finest buttons in the clothing industry. Some were even used on United States Army uniforms. For close to eighty years the ivory nut was a commodity of global importance and factories on three continents used to manufacture articles of utility and luxury. The coming of synthetics killed the world ivory nut market.The vegetable ivory nut has began a come back because of the slaughter and near extinction of mammal ivory, e.g., elephant, whales, walrus and other species.