Its usually water buffalo...Asiatic is most common today,I've made some up for customers,it's really nice stuff,checkers well ,carves reasonably well ,polishes beautifully and like Richard said ,it's as tough as nails (stinks like #$@^ when you work on it though) )
Because of all the hand work it's not a cheap proposition though,but then again most of the "real and good " stuff isn't...heres a pic of one from last year.It's almost done, just a little clean up around the pattern ,cut the borders a little more polish etc...there's a spur on this one I didn't get a pic of.
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