Preparing and Preserving a Columbia Mammoth Skull Fragment

The time to buy something is when you first spot it. Not the best approach but someone else will probably want it. At the Gulf Coast Gem and Mineral show, three of the twenty-seven dealers were retiring and selling off their fossils and cabochons. It was pointed out that one dealer had a fragment of a Columbian Mammoth Skull, that had been found in a Texas streambank, (I also bought two dinosaur eggshell fragments from the same booth). At half off I just had to buy it! It is the only piece I have ever seen for sale. The fossil is at least 13000 years old, which is the time when the last Columbian mammoths died off, (or slaughtered by early humans).

As we are getting ready to migrate north, I decided to clean and preserve the delicate skull parts. Luckily, I have dental tools, paint brushes, and foam brushes in my jewelry making work box and so I began to slowly remove the sand grains, rock pebbles, and bone fragments, keeping all of the loose material for a future display.

It took about ten hours to remove the loose material, (regolith), and as I cleaned each area, I applied two layers of Mod Podge. It’s similar to Elmers glue, which is often used after diluting with water, to preserve delicate fragmented bones.

Some small bone fragments came free, and one large piece, which I was able to reattach to the skull. When I finished the cleaning, I applied another two coats of craft glue. I am happy with the results! Now if I can just find more!