Tony Eaton Posted November 4, 2010 Share Posted November 4, 2010 One thing about donation to science, if a new species it could be named after you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tracer Posted November 4, 2010 Share Posted November 4, 2010 hmmm, lots of excitement and pressure seems like, in owning something cool sometimes. funny how picking something up and taking it home can convey a sense of responsibility and/or obligation. somehow i'm not feeling it. if the fossil were mine, which it most decidedly isn't, the first thing i'd do is dance around a little, being careful not to step on it. then, i'd try to get it outside in bright sunlight and take leventy-sixteen pictures of it. then i'd probably put it in some semi-sealed container so that all the low-humidity air indoors can't dry it out too fast, because that kind of matrix tends to crack if dried fast. then i'd probably open it up and look at it every few days to get yet another whiff of my greatness and renown for having found and actually owning such a cool thing, which is so much cooler than getting out my wallet and buying it would have been. i'd marvel about its detail and completeness, and try to imagine the life of the fish and what it was like, and what else was in the ecosystem back then, and what happened to bury and preserve the fish. i'd probably certainly name it. would probably give it either a funny, incongruous name, like say "hermine", or a tough, predatory name, like "spike". guess i could name it "hermine spike". so anyway, then i'd at some point start sort of emailing some of my most wondrous pictures around to various places, asking "experts" what they think the specific name should be of "hermine spike". if there developed a consensus regarding this, i'd perhaps scribble down the consensus name and tape it to the outside of the sealed container, along with the true name i've given the fossil and the date, time, location, and what i had for lunch the day it was found. all of this would take, say, um, coupla weeks, tops. meanwhile, in the back of my mind, i'd be contemplating who i'd let do a full-back tattoo on me if i subsequently had to go around shirtless for the rest of my life. i mean, there's quintillions of tattoo "artists" in the world, and this is a big decision. one thing i know for sure - i would not ship myself to any tattoo artist. i have only one back, and entrusting it to common carriers is definitely not a concept which i embrace with pulchritudinous thoughts. let's face it, those places get people who live to drop-kick others' christmas presents onto the back (or the top) of big trucks driven by guys who drive super-aggressively to avoid ever being called "hermine haulers". at the end of the day, i'd probably decide to avoid getting the tattoo at all. i mean, a hundred years from now, what difference does it make? i forgot what i was talking about, so time to close. to the owner of this topic, i wish you a great day and great happiness. do whatever you wish to with it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted November 4, 2010 Share Posted November 4, 2010 <in "old tracer's book of practical fossils", all have three names: common, jellicle, and a secret one known only to the fossil> Sincere apologies to T. S. Elliot "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lawooten Posted November 7, 2010 Share Posted November 7, 2010 Really wonderful catch I would pee my pants if I found one like that! I wonder if there is more of it in the matrix. The best days are spent collecting fossils Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hit The Deck Posted January 18, 2011 Author Share Posted January 18, 2011 Please, please, please have a professional do the prep work for you. Also, make sure that in your will you donate it to UT in Austin, or preferably SMU in Dallas. If you prize the science of paleontology, I would donate it immediately. Austin chaulk is very difficult to prep. The fish are very unstable and flake away easily. If you would like the name of a VERY good preparator, send me a message and I will give you his information. He did the mosasaur skull for me that you see as my avatar, as well as a sauradon skull that I have. He is located in Texas and travels to Dallas often. In 15 years of specializing in the fishes of the western interior seaway, I have only seen 1 such skull, and unfortunately it is now lost to science forever. If you are willing to donate it immediately, I can put you together with a paleontologist friend of mine that im sure would be happy to write the specimen up and publish it in major publication like SVP or Kansas acedemy of science. You would be noted in the publication. I suspect that the skull would be worthy of a SVP presentation. At any rate, congratulation on the find. I would LOVE to see it in person! If you're willing, please get in touch! For those that do not favor donation, remember this, land owners love the idea of something from their land going to a museum. I have access to many properties in western Kansas ONLY because they know that if I find something significant it will ALWAYS go to a museum. (okay, I'll get off my soap box!) Hi Boneman007, Sorry for the late reply, I was a little overwhelmed with all the attention to this piece, I have it cut down to a more mobile size piece of matrix that’s all I have done. I live in Houston but make it up north whenever I can make a hunt. So to see it up close would just take a little coordination. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Menser Posted January 18, 2011 Share Posted January 18, 2011 I vote for leaving it AS IS. Great find - and not worth the risk of destroying it. Be true to the reality you create. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steelhead9 Posted January 18, 2011 Share Posted January 18, 2011 Mild air abrasives are a must for prepping this beautiful fish. Good chance of more skeleton in matrix, so be careful if you are reducing the size. Nice as it is, but a treasure if prepped out properly. Good Luck! Still Life Fossils Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaleoPastels Posted January 18, 2011 Share Posted January 18, 2011 WOW I really like that!! Looks like a fishie :3 awesome find! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hit The Deck Posted April 12, 2013 Author Share Posted April 12, 2013 Got the Skull back from Brock!!!!! Looks great thanks Brock and everyone who kept me from damaging it, it was way to delicate for me to have been successful. I'll post pix soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sward Posted April 13, 2013 Share Posted April 13, 2013 I'm sure we're all anxious to see the finished product. I know I am. SWardSoutheast Missouri (formerly Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX) USA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sward Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 Got the Skull back from Brock!!!!! Looks great thanks Brock and everyone who kept me from damaging it, it was way to delicate for me to have been successful. I'll post pix soon. I'm anxiously waiting to see your finished product. Any pics yet? SWardSoutheast Missouri (formerly Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX) USA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jersey Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 (edited) Somehow I missed the post in which you noted that the fossil has been prepped. Sounds like it was a great job. Can't wait to see it. Edited April 25, 2013 by Jersey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lissa318 Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 Very cool and looking forward to seeing finished pics! Congrats on the find! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
revasius Posted April 25, 2013 Share Posted April 25, 2013 Very nice find !!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hit The Deck Posted April 26, 2013 Author Share Posted April 26, 2013 Thanks Brock!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roz Posted April 26, 2013 Share Posted April 26, 2013 Wonderful! Welcome to the forum! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnJ Posted April 26, 2013 Share Posted April 26, 2013 Outstanding! It was worth the wait. The human mind has the ability to believe anything is true. - JJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foshunter Posted April 26, 2013 Share Posted April 26, 2013 Outstanding, will make for a nice display piece. Extremely nice prep job----Tom Grow Old Kicking And Screaming !!"Don't Tread On Me" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted April 26, 2013 Share Posted April 26, 2013 (edited) Phenomenal job by Brock! Hope you don't mind, Hit the Deck, but I combined a before and after pic for full effect! Thanks for the update! Congratulations on a museum quality fish skull! Regards, Edited April 26, 2013 by Fossildude19 Tim - VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER VFOTM --- APRIL - 2015 __________________________________________________ "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks." John Muir ~ ~ ~ ~ ><))))( *> About Me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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