Ivory elephant mini sculptures . Ivory was also used for billiard balls and dominoes . Some religions even believe that ivory can be used for medicine . Many people use artificial materials for these items now , but other consider real ivory to be a sign of luxury . From 1979 - 1989 the African elephant population dropped dramatically from around 1.3 million to just 600,000 . During each of these years , around 75,000 African elephants were killed for their ivory , which was worth around 1 billion dollars each year . Around 80 % of the elephants who were killed were killed illegally .