"Sold for 45 Million Won Each"... People Searching for 'One-Shot Fortune' Extinct Mammoth Ivory [New Jobs]

Harvesting Ivory from Frozen Mammoth Corpses
New 'Hunter' Profession Emerges Selling at High Prices

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The mammoth, the ancestor of the elephant, is known to have gone extinct a very long time ago. However, there are still people who "hunt" mammoths to make a living. More precisely, they are "ivory hunters" who excavate and sell the fossilized mammoth "ivory" from long ago.

Alternatives to Elephant Ivory... People Turning to Extinct Animal Bones

All animals in the elephant family have ivory. Mammoths, which were much larger than typical elephants, had even bigger ivory. The ivory of an adult mammoth is said to reach up to 2 meters in length and weigh several hundred kilograms.

Model of the restored mammoth.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Ivory has long been treated as a high-priced "specialty product," and during the Age of Exploration when Europe expanded into Africa, the trade of extracting and transporting large quantities of elephant ivory was active. However, as a result, elephant populations dwindled, and now elephant hunting and ivory poaching are strictly prohibited worldwide. Because of this, traditional hunters have turned their attention to mammoth ivory, which is not banned.

Amazingly, mammoth ivory still exists. Modern mammoth hunters mainly operate in cold regions such as the Siberian permafrost, where there is a high possibility that dead mammoths have been preserved without fossilization beneath the frozen ground. Those who "excavate" these mammoths and extract only the ivory are called "ivory hunters."

Hunters Flock as Siberia Emerges Due to Climate Change

Mammoth ivory excavated in Russia [Image source=National Geographic YouTube capture]

How much does mammoth ivory excavated from Siberia sell for? Each piece is treated as a high-priced "artifact." According to a 2019 report by the American technology media outlet Wired, a 65 kg piece of ivory excavated at that time was sold in China for $34,000 (approximately 45 million KRW). The hunters who extracted this ivory reportedly earned as much as $100,000 (about 130 million KRW) over eight days.

The recent increase in ivory hunters is due to climate change. The Siberian permafrost (ground frozen year-round) is protected by thick layers of ice, hard soil, and sediment, making mining impossible in the past.

However, due to abnormal high temperatures exposing the permafrost to intense sunlight, the true land of Siberia is gradually being revealed. Land that has never before been touched by human hands is opening up. This land is like a "treasure trove" not only for archaeologists but also for hunters seeking quick fortunes.

Of course, ivory excavation remains a very arduous task. Hunters must break the ice covering the permafrost with powerful water jets from fire pumps, drill underground, and then descend directly to the site where the frozen mammoth carcass lies. During this process, there is a risk of the overlying soil collapsing or slipping, which could be fatal.

There are no detailed statistics yet on how active Siberian mammoth ivory excavation has become. However, according to Russian statistics from 2017, approximately 72 tons of mammoth ivory were exported overseas.