Bone carving is the act of creating art forms by carving into
animal bones and often includes the carving of
antlers and horns. It can result in the ornamentation of a bone, or the creation of a figure. It has been practiced by a variety of world cultures, sometimes as a cheaper, and recently a legal, substitute for
ivory carving. It was important in
prehistoric art, with notable figures like the
Swimming Reindeer (antler), and many of the
Venus figurines. The
Anglo-Saxon Franks Casket is a bone casket imitating earlier ivory ones.