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Belemnite Fossils: Guards, Internal Molds and Collector Identification
Deep collector guide to belemnites: anatomy, locality, authenticity, restoration, provenance and marketplace comparison.
Deep collector guide to belemnites: anatomy, locality, authenticity, restoration, provenance and marketplace comparison.
Deep collector guide to Aurora and Lee Creek fossils: anatomy, locality, authenticity, restoration, provenance and marketplace comparison.
Deep collector guide to Asaphus trilobites: anatomy, locality, authenticity, restoration, provenance and marketplace comparison.
Deep collector guide to fossils as investments: anatomy, locality, authenticity, restoration, provenance and marketplace comparison.
Deep collector guide to ammolite and ammonite: anatomy, locality, authenticity, restoration, provenance and marketplace comparison.
Deep collector guide to Calvert Cliffs fossils: anatomy, locality, authenticity, restoration, provenance and marketplace comparison.
Benefits, risks, residues, and disclosure for acid preparation.
A disciplined question list can expose missing dimensions, repairs, vague locality, and legal uncertainty. Practical advice for fossil collectors.
Inventories, photographs, values, storage, and policy questions.
How to prepare records and approach an appropriate institution.
Start with well-documented common fossils rather than dramatic specimens with weak provenance. Practical advice for fossil collectors.
How to document modern materials added during preparation.
A collector checklist for invoices, permits, and customs records.
Handwritten labels, dealer cards, museum exchanges, and field numbers can preserve irreplaceable history. Practical advice for fossil collectors.
What polished and microscopic sections can reveal.
What fluorescence can reveal—and what it cannot prove.
Foraminifera, ostracods, conodonts, pollen, and careful labeling.
Why matching split surfaces strengthen context and value.
Marketplace language often mixes natural material, casts, repairs, restoration, and decorative assembly. Practical advice for fossil collectors.
Lighting and scale for tracks, trails, burrows, and borings.
Dirt, matrix, coatings, and old repairs may contain evidence that aggressive cleaning destroys. Practical advice for fossil collectors.
Color can vary within one deposit and repeat across unrelated rocks; locality links anatomy to geologic context. Practical advice for fossil collectors.
Start with common, well-documented specimens that teach morphology and matrix.
Read guide →Translate marketplace language into specific questions about original material.
Read guide →Old records can preserve locality and collection history that anatomy alone cannot recover.
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