[NHCOLL-L:2426] marcasite disease

[Bob Glotzhober]

I noted a couple of years back some exchange on this list-server about some fossil whale bones with a yellow dust that was reported to be marcasite disease (formerly pyrite disease) from iron sulfides.

That note says nothing about what can be done to neutralize or at least slow down this process.  In one of our collections of 18 bones of a mastodon, 2 of the pelvic bones appear to be suffering from macasite disease (as described in the e-mails about the whale bones).  They and the others need stablization anyway -- either with B76 or a solution of white glue (I hear pros & cons to both of these).  The data with this set of bones is sparce, but they appear to have been in our collections since the very early 1900s and don't appear to have had any conservation done to them.  Who can advise us on how to proceed with the macasite diseased specimens?  Why do two of 18 have it and not the rest from the same lot -- is this a question of where they were resting in the ground in relation to a water supply or what?  None of the remainder of our other mastodon specimens appear to have this disease either.  At least not yet.

Bob

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Robert C. Glotzhober
Curator, Natural History		Phone  614/ 297-2633
Ohio Historical Society		Fax      614/ 297-2233
1982 Velma Avenue			E-mail   bglotzhober at ohiohistory.org
Columbus, Ohio  43211-2497
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Nicholas D. Kristof, July 27, 2004 in a New York Times Syndicated "Forum" article in the Columbus Dispatch


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