A hard, black rubber material made by treating rubber with sulfur, used for making decorative items, pipes, and musical instrument parts.
From ebony with the suffix -ite (indicating a mineral, stone, or material), named because it resembles ebony wood in appearance while being a vulcanized rubber compound.
Ebonite was a breakthrough material in the 19th century—it was cheaper than ebony but looked similar, and it revolutionized manufacturing by allowing mass production of luxury-looking goods from clarinet reeds to decorative boxes.
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