Fossil Preparation - First Extinct Dog! Hesperocyon skull and partial skeleton (30 million yrs ago)

So here's the complete time lapse fossil preparation video of one of the first ever known members of the dog family (Canidae) known as Hesperocyon. This fossil was found exposed on a private ranch in South Dakota and comes from the Brule Formation of the White River Group dating back to the Oligocene 30 million years ago. This time lapse condenses about 15 hours of prep time down to a couple of minutes. Below are a list of some of the tools I used for this prep project:

Hand tools (used for soft matrix only):
Exacto knife - for removing matrix close to the teeth
Pin Vice with Tungsten Carbide stylus - to clean between the teeth

Pnuematic air tools (linked to large air compressor):
Zoic Palaeotech ZPT Microraptor - Lower pressure air tool used for cleaning the Oreodont jaw and around the bones.

Consolidants:
3-4% Paraloid B72 & acetone - helps penetrate into the smallest of fractures to give the bone strength.

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