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Bakelite is the first synthetic plastic, developed in 1909 by Belgian Dr. Baekeland. It was a popular material, used a lot in radios and televisions, for example. These days it's not used a lot, but the material has a strong retro attraction.

Bakelite was a good material for mahjong tiles, and Bakelite mahjong sets are very popular these days for their vintage value. Bakelite tiles are yellowish, some might say butterscotch. Other plastic used for mahjong tiles is Catalin, and telling Catalin from Bakelite can be very difficult, since the materials are of almost identical chemical composition. It doesn't really matter, either.

For more information, read How to Identify What Your Tiles Are Made Of at Sloperama Mah-Jongg Exchange.

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