It is, on the whole, probable that the substance of the throne was wood, and that the ivory, cut into thin slabs, and probably carved in patterns, was applied externally as a veneer. This is found to have been the practice in Assyria. The gold was probably not placed over the ivory, but covered other parts of the throne.
Related Commentaries of 1 Kings 10:18
1 Kings 10:18
18 Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with the best gold.