London antique dealers 'made to smash up ivory relics at customs'

Tough laws: The US has changed regulations on ivory entering the country amid a global clamp down, including in places like Kenya (pictured)
Thomas Mukoya/Reuters

Leading London antique dealers were forced to smash up valuable ivory relics thanks to strict US customs laws.

The dealers, who had flow into Miami for the annual antiques fare, were given hammers and pliers to hack the ivory off antiques including teapots and figurines before they could pass through customs.

One London expert was even forced to decapitate the head of a silver figure that was more than 100 years old.

Jonathan Dubiner, of Paul Bennett Antiques, told the Times: "The fact that the ivory was contemporary to the piece and nearly 200 years old, they weren't interested in that at all.

He added: "I was given a hammer and a pair of pliers. One of the sets wasn't a problem as the ivory came out quite easily, but in the other set the handle was completely ruined."

New laws were introduced in the US last year to clamp down on ivory entering the country, no matter how old the item.

Anyone entering the country with ivory content must declare it to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

Last month Kenya staged what is thought to have been the largest ivory burn in history as part of efforts to clamp down on the trade.

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