Artifacts

The Calvert Cliffs of Maryland are peaceful now, but during the Miocene period (between 5 and 23 million years ago), they were the underwater home of megalodon, the giant ancestor of the great...

Sealing a fossil stabilizes it from chipping or flaking, and is called consolidation. A consolidant is a hardener which makes the dry or fragile fossil more stable and preserves its original...

Fossils are remains or signs of organisms that have passed, though the term is generally applied to ancient organisms. Fossils fall into two broad categories: preservation with alteration and...

Much of the theory of continental drift (now referred to as plate tectonics) derives from evidence provided by fossils. Scientists have been collecting parallel evidence across the Pacific Ocean...

Fossils are preserved in two main ways: with and without alteration. Preservation with alteration includes carbonization, petrifaction, recrystallization and replacement. Preservation without...

Fossil excavation captures the imaginations of children and adults around the world. Finding a fossil and actually seeing a living organism encased in rock creates a sense of wonder at the natural...

Fossils are evidence of creatures that lived long ago. Thousands, even millions of years ago, animals or plants sometimes became encased so completely by mud pr other sediments that they were not...

There are a few ways that plant fossils can be formed, but the odds are against it actually happening. Most vegetation breaks down quickly when it dies and never gets the opportunity to be...

Making leaf fossils is easy using several easily found ingredients. Using this method, you can make as many leaf fossils as you want, but make sure you use old utensils that you don't need...

Whether you're looking for dinosaur bones or the prehistoric remains of plants and animals, fossil hunting can be a fun activity for the whole family or a serious hobby for the collector. Fossils...