Kane Posted January 21, 2018 Share Posted January 21, 2018 While spending too much time and money at Princess Auto (Canadian version of Harbor Freight), I had picked up a rotary tool to remove some tool marks from a few prepped pieces, as air abrasion seems to take a bit longer. Before I set about doing that in earnest, I thought I may as well do another probing exploration of a shale slab from the Widder Formation from Arkona that has been quite kind to me. This was a piece I had entered in last October's FOTM, but I may as well show the slab's history... The first is how I found it during a trip to Arkona back in October with @Malcolmt, @Shamalama (who got the real winning find of the day with his Eldredgeops iowensis southworthi roller!) and @crinus 1 ...How to Philosophize with a Hammer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kane Posted January 21, 2018 Author Share Posted January 21, 2018 So I begin working away at the two I know are in there. Sadly, both of them have some minor damage. The upper left one is missing a bit of cephalon shell and a bit of eye. The bottom right one has some missing pygidial spikes. Second picture shows a bit more prep and photo colour enhancement to bring out detail. ...How to Philosophize with a Hammer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kane Posted January 21, 2018 Author Share Posted January 21, 2018 While probing around, I was greeted by trilobite number three. Unfortunately, that end of the rock broke off. With no proper glue on hand, I desperately used wood glue. It's still holding. This one is far more damaged than the other two, missing flakey shell parts of pleura and glabella. ...How to Philosophize with a Hammer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kane Posted January 21, 2018 Author Share Posted January 21, 2018 More exploring, and a pyritized nautiloid appears. Another wee bit of bad luck as it lifted right off, so I had to glue it back down. So this is where I pretty much left it until I could get my hands on something to smooth out those ugly, gouged tool marks. ...How to Philosophize with a Hammer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kane Posted January 21, 2018 Author Share Posted January 21, 2018 So before I got to remove tool marks, I decided to probe a bit more just in case. I'm glad I did! What started under the microscope as 0.25 mm exposure of a genal spine was met on the opposite side as well. As I cleared more away with a needle, a horseshoe shape started emerging. At first I thought it was just another fragment. I was digging pretty deep between the spines at this point and was about to give up. But I noticed it was continuing deeper... and deeper... until I hit bottom. Or, should I say, upside down! It was now clear to me that I was working on the ventral side of this trilobite. Oh my. I have never worked from the ventral before, so I was understandably nervous. But, easy does it, I was able to clear more and more. Those who have worked with Greenops from Arkona know how delicate and flaky these can be -- but imagine working from underneath! This is not a negative / impression, but a ventral side Greenops, very likely complete. I had to stabilize one of the genal spines with crazy glue as it flaked off (and it took about 10 minutes with a needle to carefully put it back in place - very challenging for big clumsy fingers like mine!). 1 ...How to Philosophize with a Hammer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kane Posted January 21, 2018 Author Share Posted January 21, 2018 So here are two close-ups of the ventral-sided bug. If you can make it out in the photo, there is a mostly complete hypostome there (I think?). The problem I'm facing now is that I can't risk prepping it too much further. The other complete trilobite does not sit directly on top of this one, and so there is about a few millimetres of matrix between the two. To go further might undercut and break the top trilobite. ...And there could be more if I probe a bit more. Four bugs on one rock is not too shabby at all for Arkona! Not only are there other spaces on this side of the rock, but I also have the option to explore the other side, thin layer by thin layer. At this point, I think I might have to commit this to an expert for further preparation. I just know fiddling around with this for much longer is going to increase the risk of a heartbreaking mistake. 1 ...How to Philosophize with a Hammer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ptychodus04 Posted January 21, 2018 Share Posted January 21, 2018 Nice job @Kane. I think you can go a bit closer to the other trilobite. Consider switching to a scalpel and shaving the shale away under the microscope. I know it’s nerve wracking but if you go slowly and don’t try to take more than the thinnest layer off at a time, you can get pretty close. 2 Regards, Kris Global Paleo Services, LLC https://globalpaleoservices.com http://instagram.com/globalpaleoservices http://instagram.com/kris.howe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malcolmt Posted January 21, 2018 Share Posted January 21, 2018 Thats a pretty neat slab you found... we need the snow to go away so we can get back to that bench Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kane Posted January 21, 2018 Author Share Posted January 21, 2018 2 hours ago, Malcolmt said: Thats a pretty neat slab you found... we need the snow to go away so we can get back to that bench Absolutely. And not even all the snow... just a good enough thaw. That slope faces south and mostly full sun so it may be clear even now. This time we have to bring back chunks/slabs from those 6 inch layers to inspect at home! ...How to Philosophize with a Hammer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Herb Posted January 22, 2018 Share Posted January 22, 2018 very nice slab and prep. "Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence"_ Carl Sagen No trees were killed in this posting......however, many innocent electrons were diverted from where they originally intended to go. " I think, therefore I collect fossils." _ Me "When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth."__S. Holmes "can't we all just get along?" Jack Nicholson from Mars Attacks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darktooth Posted January 22, 2018 Share Posted January 22, 2018 Good job so far @Kane! Looking forward to seeing it finished. Its a nice piece especially because of the muliple trilos. I like Trilo-butts and I cannot lie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheney416 Posted January 22, 2018 Share Posted January 22, 2018 What a nice bugs! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ynot Posted January 22, 2018 Share Posted January 22, 2018 Nice piece Kane! Darwin said: " Man sprang from monkeys." Will Rogers said: " Some of them didn't spring far enough." My Fossil collection - My Mineral collection My favorite thread on TFF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kane Posted January 22, 2018 Author Share Posted January 22, 2018 Thanks everyone. The only update on this one has been a bit of smoothing, and removing the nautiloid area (glued on, it looks pretty crappy), and getting a bit closer to the other trilo as per Kris' suggestion. ...How to Philosophize with a Hammer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnBrewer Posted January 22, 2018 Share Posted January 22, 2018 Great work Kane! John Map of UK fossil sites Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ptychodus04 Posted January 22, 2018 Share Posted January 22, 2018 9 hours ago, Kane said: Thanks everyone. The only update on this one has been a bit of smoothing, and removing the nautiloid area (glued on, it looks pretty crappy), and getting a bit closer to the other trilo as per Kris' suggestion. Can't wait to see the final results. Regards, Kris Global Paleo Services, LLC https://globalpaleoservices.com http://instagram.com/globalpaleoservices http://instagram.com/kris.howe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJB Posted January 25, 2018 Share Posted January 25, 2018 Turned out to be a busy rock kane. I too am lookiing forward to the rock cleanup. RB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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