horn used as a hammer with cleaver to cut fish in southeast China ritual participant blowing a
water buffalo horn during the sacrifice ceremony, in
Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture of
Hunan • Horned animals are sometimes hunted so their mounted head or horns can be displayed as a
hunting trophy or as decorative objects. • Some cultures use bovid horns as
musical instruments, for example, the
shofar. These have evolved into
brass instruments in which, unlike the
trumpet, the bore gradually increases in width through most of its length—that is to say, it is conical rather than cylindrical. These are called
horns, though now made of
metal. •
Drinking horns are bovid horns removed from the bone core, cleaned, polished, and used as
drinking vessels. (This is similar to the legend of the
cornucopia.) It has been suggested that the shape of a natural horn was also the model for the
rhyton, a horn-shaped drinking vessel. •
Powder horns were originally bovid horns fitted with lids and carrying straps, used to carry
gunpowder.
Powder flasks of any material may be referred to as powder horns. •
Shoehorns were originally made from slices of bovid horn, which provided the right curving shape and a smooth surface. • Antelope horns are used in traditional Chinese medicine. • Horns consist of
keratin, and the term "horn" is used to refer to this material, sometimes including similarly solid keratin from other parts of animals, such as
hoofs. Horn may be used as a material in tools,
furniture and decoration, among other uses. In these applications, horn is valued for its hardness, and it has given rise to the expression
hard as horn. Horn is somewhat
thermoplastic and (like
tortoiseshell) was formerly used for many purposes where
plastic would now be used. Horn may be used to make
glue. •
Horn bows are bows made from a combination of horn,
sinew and usually wood. These materials allow more energy to be stored in a short bow than wood alone. • Horns and horn tips from various animals have been used for centuries in the manufacture of scales, grips, or handles for
knives and other weapons, and beginning in the 19th century, for the handle scales of
handguns. • Horn
buttons may be made from horns, and historically also hooves which are a similar material. The non-bony part of the horn or hoof may be softened by heating to a temperature just above the boiling point of water, then molded in metal dies, or the hollow lower part of the horn may be slit spirally lengthwise and then flattened in a vise between wood boards, again after heating, and later cut with a holesaw or similar tool into round or other shaped blanks which are finished on a lathe or by hand. Toggle buttons are made by cutting off the solid tips of horns and perforating them. Antler buttons, and buttons made from hooves are not technically horn buttons, but are often referred to as such in popular parlance. Horns from cattle, water buffalo, and sheep are all used for commercial button making, and of other species as well, on a local and non-commercial basis. • Horn combs were common in the era before replacement by plastic, and are still made. • Horn needle cases and other small boxes, particularly of water buffalo horn, are still made. One occasionally finds horn used as a material in antique snuff boxes. • Horn strips for inlaying wood are a traditional technique. • Carved horn hairpins and other jewelry such as brooches and rings are manufactured, particularly in Asia, including for the souvenir trade. • Horn is used in artwork for small, detailed carvings. It is an easily worked and polished material, is strong and durable, and in the right variety, beautiful. • Horn chopsticks are found in Asian countries from highland Nepal and Tibet to the Pacific coast. Typically they are not the common material, but rather are higher quality decorative articles. Similarly other horn flatware, notably spoons, continues to be manufactured for decorations and other purposes. •
Long dice made of horn that have a rodlike elongated shape with four numbered faces and two small unnumbered end faces continue to be manufactured in Asia where they are traditionally used in games like
Chaupar (Pachisi) and many others. • Horn is sometimes found in
walking sticks, cane handles, and shafts. In the latter use, the horn elements may be cut into short cylindrical segments held together by a metal core. •
Horned deities appear in various guises across many world religions and mythologies. •
Horned helmets arise in different cultures, for ritual purposes rather than combat. • Horns were treated and cut into strips to make semi-transparent windows in the
vernacular architecture of the Medieval Ages. ==Dehorning==