Preservation of Arkona fossils?

[fossilzz]

Hello, I was wondering if any kind of sealant was required to preserve shale fossils from Arkona? 

[Ptychodus04]

@Malcolmt @Kane

 

As a rule, fossils require stabilization if they are soft, flaky, friable, etc.

[Kane]

I don’t use anything beyond whatever glue I might have used to stabilize something in the field. Perhaps show us what piece you were concerned about.

[Guest11596]

Are you able to provide photos of the specimens causing concern? It would help greatly in narrowing down the advice given.

[Guest11596]

Looks like Kane beat me to it.

[fossilzz]

There isn't a particular specimen I'm worried about, however some of my fossils from Arkona have at least partial pyritization, and I've been reading about pyrite disease which can affect specimens like these

[Ptychodus04]

22 minutes ago, fossilzz said:

There isn't a particular specimen I'm worried about, however some of my fossils from Arkona have at least partial pyritization, and I've been reading about pyrite disease which can affect specimens like these

The presence of pyrite does not automatically mean pyrite decomposition is eminent. Condition of the pyrite as well as storage environment have a massive effect. If you're storing them in the open and you don't have a horribly humid home, your pyrite should be just fine. If you're storing the specimens in enclosed containers, that's a completely different story.

[fossilzz]

4 minutes ago, Ptychodus04 said:

If you're storing them in the open and you don't have a horribly humid home, your pyrite should be just fine.

Ok, thanks. That's reassuring.