A comb can be both a practical object and an ornament. A museum record naming celluloid invites us to examine that combination without assuming the material from colour alone.
Begin with the documented identification
The National Museum of American History’s Celluloid Comb record identifies an ornamental example. Use the museum’s material identification as an attributed statement, then keep your visual description of the object separate.
Notice the relationship between the teeth and the decorative upper portion in the available image. If the image does not show a detail clearly, leave it undescribed rather than borrowing features from another comb.
Choose a narrow comparison
Compare the record with another documented ornamental comb by asking one question about shape or stated material. Similar appearance alone cannot establish that both were made using the same substance or process.
A useful notebook entry includes the exact record link and the source’s title, followed by the feature you want to investigate. Avoid testing or treating an old plastic based on a short historical article. The object can support a focused inquiry into ornament, manufacture and naming while its care remains a separate specialist question.