Rhinoceros horn cups have been in the news lately with very high prices reported for sales of 18th- and 19th-century carved Chinese libation cups. But do you know what a rhinoceros horn is made of? We were surprised to learn is not horn but keratin, the main component in hair, fingernails, and hooves. Fame has harmed the endangered species, poachers are cutting the horns from live rhinos and leaving the animals to die. And even dead rhinos are being mistreated. Thieves are cutting the horns off stuffed rhinos in natural history exhibits. Over thirty thefts have been reported in Europe this year.
Photo Credit: eHow.com
Rhino poaching has now become rife in South Africa where I live. See http://www.stoprhinopoaching.com/ to see the statistics. 284 Rhino killed so far in 2011, and the count goes on… All this because peaple in the East use it for medicinal purposes.
Please make this known.
FWIW, all horn is made of keratin. You may be confusing horn with antler. Antlers are made of bone.