Treatment

Fossils, having survived for countless millions of years, are often fragile and crumbly. There are many ways to preserve your fossils to prevent them from deteriorating, and the most successful one for me has been to coat them in a layer of transparent PVA glue. This holds them together, makes them stronger, and prevents outside influences from damaging them.

In some cases, interesting features of the fossil may be hidden by rock. You can apply weak acids (such as vinegar or hydrochloric) to this rock and it will dissolve away. It is best to use a small brush to do this, because a lack of precision could damage the specimen. Some fossils are preserved in minerals such as iron pyrite which do not dissolve in hydrochloric acid, but surrounded by limestone which does. In such cases, given that the fossil is strong and completely pyritised, you should plonk the fossil in a vessel of acid and leave it for a few hours. When you come back, you will have a beautiful specimen waiting.

Be careful when handling acid, and if you don't think you're capable, get somebody else to do it for you. Always wear gloves and take care not to let the acid spill onto work surfaces.

Hydrochloric acid can be obtained from most good geological suppliers but is a dangerous regulated substance.

Storage

It is very important to store your collection in a way which does not damage them or make them hard to access. A large display cabinet is often the most suitable option. Alternatively you could store your fossils in a chest of drawers or a book case.

You may want to make a display of your collection so that other people can enjoy your fossils. If you do, make sure that you have somewhere separate to store the less display-worthy fossils. Make sure that each fossil has enough room to be picked up, studied, and put back again. Delicate specimens such as amber or shale fossils should be stored in padding or on bubble wrap.

Try to organise your fossils in the display case in to categories such as age group, location or type of organism.

Records

There is little point in having a collection if you forget everything about your specimens! To avoid this it is best to write labels for all your fossils, stating what the specimen is, what rock it is in and where it comes from. It is also a good idea to keep a catalogue, containing the same information but with an illustration. You could do this using a computer spreadsheet. To link the fossils in your collection to those represented in your book, you could paint the specimens with an identification number and refer to it in the catalogue.