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Ivory and its products are in high demand in both national and international markets due to their charismatic qualities and exotic values. However, increased law enforcement efforts and legal restrictions have limited the ivory trade and the preparation of its products. To meet the market demand, fake ivory items are now being made from osseous materials, which have flooded the market. This situation complicates identification efforts by frontline law enforcement and wildlife forensic laboratories. Current ivory identification methods face several challenges, including inconsistent accuracy, high costs, slow turnaround times, and the issue of destructive sample requirements. To address these issues, this study developed a simple, rapid, and accurate method for identifying ivory products using FTIR spectroscopy combined with partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA). We received seven (n = 7) carvings from law enforcement agencies to identify whether the carvings are of ivory origin. Initially, we performed the FTIR analysis for all the carvings and compared the spectra with known FTIR spectra of Asian elephant ivory and bone (served as internal reference). The results indicated that out of seven carvings, samples S1–S4 and S7 were found not to be of ivory origin. In contrast, the FTIR spectra recorded for two carvings (S5 and S6) were identical to FTIR spectra of ivory and bone. To confirm these results further, we employed PLS-DA to assess whether carvings S5 and S6 were indeed made of ivory or a material with a similar chemical composition, likely bone. We also used a commercial IR library to identify the chemical composition of carvings S1–S4 and S7. The PLS-DA analysis indicated that carvings S5 and S6 were crafted from bone-like materials, whereas the IR library analysis showed that carvings S1–S4 and S7 were prepared using sheet molding compounds and polymers. To further investigate the biological origin of the bone materials used in carvings S5 and S6, DNA analysis was performed. The results indicated that the crafted materials were derived from Bubalus bubalis (domestic water buffalo). This study demonstrated a simple, rapid and cost-effective method for identifying the origin of ivory in carvings. Additionally, it opened new avenues for screening carvings using ivory-specific FTIR spectra, which have potential applications in wildlife forensic analysis.