Fossils And Such

[PrehistoricFlorida]

Here's a pic of my finished Serratolamna/Isurus Praecursor frame. And a pic of the upper bear canine I found yesterday cleaned up and preserved, the colors are intense. Oh yeah, and a translucent herney that some of you might enjoy....

[Auspex]

Oh, my! Auriculatus, the consistently high quality of the materials you post is... breathtaking.

[Maryland Mike]

Really nice.

What are you doing for preservation, other than soaking in filtered water for at least 24 hours?

[PrehistoricFlorida]

I boil my fossils in paraffin. The paraffin boils out and replaces the water inside the fossil and leaves it rock hard preventing cracking and popping as it would usually shrink as it dries out.

[Auspex]

Sure leaves it looking pretty! I assume this is only used on bone? Do you literally drop it in boiling parafin for a while, then wipe it off?

[PrehistoricFlorida]

I use it on bones and bone artifacts, also on canines like the bear canine. For carnassials and molars I'll just dip the roots in a 50/50 elmers glue/water mix. I also treat any elephant material (roots of teeth, tusks) with the elmers glue mix.

[Rain1950]

Mighty impressive

A note about using a substance like Elmers glue. Bacteria can feed on it which is why museums don't use it. Prior to the use of thinned plastics, the standard was thinned shellac.

[Xiphactinus]

Wow....very, very nice. That bear tooth is killer.

[Cody]

Im a little new at this whole thing of preservation.Can you tell me again how you preserved those teeth.

Thanks,

-Cody

[PrehistoricFlorida]

I boil most of my bones in paraffin. You can buy the paraffin at a grocery store and slowly melt it until you have a pot of it but it is no bubbling (this is the low setting on my stove top) drop the bones into the paraffin and allow them to bubble. Slowly bring the temperature up (to about half way between low and medium on my stove top). Once all bubbling has stopped coming from the bones they are ready to be removed, wipe off surface of the bone with a paper towel and allow them to cool to room temperature. Do not try to speed along cooling process by placing bones in freezer or on ice... trust me, it's not a good idea...

[Maryland Mike]

Thanks for the info.

It really gives everything a nice sheen.

Is paraffin pretty much the standard?

Since I like to avoid using petroleum products where possible (although in this case, since petroleum is a fossil product, maybe it is best), does anyone know could good quality beeswax be used? Or is there a reason why it would not be good for this purpose?

Please note, do not boil paraffin or beeswax on a gas stove unless you are really serious about redecorating your kitchen.

It's best to use an electric stove or get a hot plate with a good thermostat for safety.

[Guest solius symbiosus]

does anyone know could good quality beeswax be used? Or is there a reason why it would not be good for this purpose?

Both beeswax, and paraffin, are organic compounds. As such, with age, the piece will begin to deteriorate due to bacterial action on the compounds.