Ivory was imported into the Aegean from Africa or Syria. It was used in similar ways to wood, being made particularly into boxes, mirror handles and decorative inlays on furniture, where its contrast in colour to the black of ebony was exploited.
Minoan ivory carving reached high levels of skill and artistry, producing, among other things, exquisite figurines of bull leapers made in many small pieces. When the Mycenaeans seized control of Crete after 1450 BC, they took considerable booty in ivory back to the mainland.
They also patronized Cretan ivory workers, whose skills they imitated, rapidly developing their own vigorous style. Among their favourite products were boxes cut from tusks in the round.
Since ivory was an expensive material, its working was confined to major sites like Mycenae. Their products were exported to Syria and Cyprus where they gave rise to a school of ivory working that survived the fall of the Mycenaeans.
