New Members Lawliet Posted June 12, 2008 New Members Share Posted June 12, 2008 Hi, I don't know much about fossils except what I've learned from Simon Conway Morris lectures on Youtube.com. Anyway, I want to know whether or not a fossil can be faked. If so, how can they be distinguished from real fossils? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xiphactinus Posted June 12, 2008 Share Posted June 12, 2008 Yes, fossils can and are faked quite regularly. I won't buy any Moroccan or Chinese fossils. A majority you see for sale are faked to one extent or another. These are passed off as real fossils in a sale or trade. Be aware, there is a difference between "faked" and "reconstructed/repaired". Many fossils, esp. larger vertebrates are missing pieces or have breaks. These are often repaired to make the fossil more display-worthy and interesting. These repairs aren't passed off as original fossil when selling/trading. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted June 12, 2008 Share Posted June 12, 2008 Oh, they certainly can. There are complete fabrications, alterations to make rare ones out of common, Chinese "fossil" birds made out of chicken bones, on & on & on. If there's money in it, it will be done. Just how to recognize a fake depends on what it's pretending to be, and requires experience with the real deal. If you dig it up yourself, it's probably genuine; otherwise, caveat emptor. Some catagories are so prone to falsification as to beg caution automatically (Chinese birds, inclusions in amber, and Moroccan trilobites, for example). I know this answer is not particularly helpful, but I hope that it is instructional. "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New Members Lawliet Posted June 12, 2008 Author New Members Share Posted June 12, 2008 Ok. Is there any way that a fossil made naturally (or artificially) within the past few hundred years can be mistaken for a 75 million year old fossil? What characteristic features do million year old fossils have that hundred year old fossils can't have? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted June 12, 2008 Share Posted June 12, 2008 There are a bunch of clues, none of which are definitive on their own. If the definition can be stretched a little, something only a couple hundred years might be considered a fossil if it is from an extinct species. In older material, you look for mineralization ("turned to stone" by various processes), but it's absence does not mean that the item is not fossil (frozen Mamouths); likewise, under certain conditions, fairly recent material may become permineralized. This is just a beginning; knowing exactly what the "fossil" is supposed to be, and where it supposidly came from is required to begin to confirm or deny it's authenticity. "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New Members Lawliet Posted June 12, 2008 Author New Members Share Posted June 12, 2008 There are a bunch of clues, none of which are definitive on their own. If the definition can be stretched a little, something only a couple hundred years might be considered a fossil if it is from an extinct species. In older material, you look for mineralization ("turned to stone" by various processes), but it's absence does not mean that the item is not fossil (frozen Mamouths); likewise, under certain conditions, fairly recent material may become permineralized. This is just a beginning; knowing exactly what the "fossil" is supposed to be, and where it supposidly came from is required to begin to confirm or deny it's authenticity. Most excellent. Your responses are much appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest solius symbiosus Posted June 12, 2008 Share Posted June 12, 2008 I won't buy any Moroccan or Chinese fossils. I second that. There are reputable dealers of those types, but as Auspex wrote "buyer beware". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted June 12, 2008 Share Posted June 12, 2008 Here's a site that will open your eyes and send a chill up your spine: ... EDIT: deleted.. Their insight is excellent. "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkfoam Posted June 12, 2008 Share Posted June 12, 2008 All, Everyone should visit the website referenced above. It has a lot of good and valuble information that all fossil buyers should have. JKFoam The Eocene is my favorite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seattleguy Posted June 12, 2008 Share Posted June 12, 2008 Well that puts a big halt to my drooling over most of the cool looking items on ebay! Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest solius symbiosus Posted June 12, 2008 Share Posted June 12, 2008 All,Everyone should visit the website referenced above. It has a lot of good and valuble information that all fossil buyers should have. JKFoam I agree. That link should be pinned somewhere so everyone will see it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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