Dockster Posted March 10 Share Posted March 10 Made an impulse buy, and need a critique to use as a learning experience. I believe these fossils are real (prob from Morocco), but I believe they have been placed in an unknown matrix for display. The seller said she believed they were probably excavated this way then material removed for better viewing. I’m asking for any info to expand my knowledge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FB003 Posted March 10 Share Posted March 10 Looks to be an "assembly" of different items quite literally. Not original matrix. They all look real though the teeth in the second picture may likely not belong to that piece of bone. SAme with the tooth in the top right above the mosasaur. Not sure what the white teeth are. 4 *Frank* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brevicollis Posted March 10 Share Posted March 10 (edited) You're rigth. All of them have been placed in that matrix for better display. Crafted fossils are a common thing on the market. Nearly all of these crafted fossils are from moroco. To make them more valuebale, cheap or damaged fossils are repaired or reconstructed whith plaster and then placed in a fake matrix piece. Here you can clearly see the plaster that was used to let the fossils look like If they are complete. It can happen naturally in the form of bone beds, but in this case, its clearly man made. Edited March 10 by Brevicolis 1 2 Are good signatures really that important ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dockster Posted March 10 Author Share Posted March 10 How much of the large Mosasaur is real? I assume the smaller Mosasaur tooth is also attached to the jaw bone with plaster? BTW: thanks for all your help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dockster Posted March 11 Author Share Posted March 11 3 hours ago, Brevicolis said: To make them more valuebale, cheap or damaged fossils are repaired or reconstructed whith plaster and then placed in a fake matrix piece. How much of the large Mosasaur is real? I assume the smaller Mosasaur tooth is also attached to the jaw bone with plaster? BTW: thanks for all your help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brevicollis Posted March 11 Share Posted March 11 3 hours ago, Dockster said: smaller Mosasaur tooth is also attached to the jaw bone with plaster? Yes, youre rigth. The large tooth is real, but the root looks critical. Im not sure that the root is a root, looks more like a random bone that was ground into this form. Same goes for the big mosasaur jaw. The teeth and the bone are real, but they're hold together whith plaster. In this case, the bone is a real jaw bone. 1 1 Are good signatures really that important ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
North Posted March 11 Share Posted March 11 Im pretty much with same thoughts than others. Asembled fossils in fake matrix. But I would like to see closer picture of the larger jaw section. I marked suspicious areas with red, blue one is ok Enchodus tooth. Take a notice how sandy/grainy look these areas have. Top right root looks very porous (generally root structures move along with tooth, not to the side). There's no such thing as too many teeth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
North Posted March 11 Share Posted March 11 Example of real Mosasaur tooth with root. Notice: No grainy neck, striations moving to same direction than crown, not sideways. 1 1 There's no such thing as too many teeth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandy Cole Posted March 11 Share Posted March 11 Hello, Since this topic is mostly about identifying what parts may be fake or reconstructed rather than the identification of the item, I've moved it to the "Is It Real" section of the forum dedicated to those types of questions. --Brandy 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dockster Posted March 11 Author Share Posted March 11 9 hours ago, North said: But I would like to see closer picture of the larger jaw section. Thanks Awesome info. I will post a closer pic of the jaw tonight. Are the two smaller white teeth plastered to the jaw also Enchodus? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brevicollis Posted March 11 Share Posted March 11 34 minutes ago, Dockster said: Are the two smaller white teeth plastered to the jaw also Enchodus? Yes, they are Enchodus. Are good signatures really that important ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dockster Posted March 11 Author Share Posted March 11 15 hours ago, North said: 15 hours ago, North said: But I would like to see closer picture of the larger jaw section. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dockster Posted March 11 Author Share Posted March 11 Ok, so I’ll try to apply what I’ve learned on my first fossil purchase. Real Mosasaur tooth plastered to a real bone not of Mosasaur origin. Grainy white layer between tooth and fake root is plaster. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JBkansas Posted March 11 Share Posted March 11 35 minutes ago, Dockster said: Ok, so I’ll try to apply what I’ve learned on my first fossil purchase. Real Mosasaur tooth plastered to a real bone not of Mosasaur origin. Grainy white layer between tooth and fake root is plaster. The bone could be mosasaur (or just about anything else). It does not appear to be original. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
North Posted March 12 Share Posted March 12 8 hours ago, Dockster said: As Brevicolis mentioned. Real fossil bone and crown, but connection is plaster. Jaw could potentially be from Mosasaur, but unlikely same than owner of the crown. 8 hours ago, Dockster said: You are correct. Real crown. Blaster neck. Im not certain with origin of the root, but it is quite weird looking. There's no such thing as too many teeth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dockster Posted March 12 Author Share Posted March 12 Need some good advice on how to use Uv (black light) to determine repairs and fakes. Is there a certain wavelength needed? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dockster Posted March 15 Author Share Posted March 15 I’m thinking this Trilobite is mold. It’s pretty lite. Is the color correct. let me know what you think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hadrosauridae Posted March 15 Share Posted March 15 Almost certainly a mold or a complete fabrication. There is no way they would leave a complete specimen crudely covered in matrix. If real, it would sell for 10x (or more) in value with a proper prep job. At the very best, this is a poorly preserved specimen(s) glued together. That rough, glued area between the head and body is a clear sign of fabrication from sand and glue/plaster. "There is no shortage of fossils. There is only a shortage of paleontologists to study them." - Larry Martin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tidgy's Dad Posted March 15 Share Posted March 15 This is a genuine cephalon crudely attached to a genuine thorax and pygidium with sand and glue. It is a common way of selling incomplete or partial specimens. Life's Good! Tortoise Friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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