Harry Pristis Posted February 1, 2018 Share Posted February 1, 2018 55 minutes ago, ynot said: I have dug "white" teeth directly from the ground, not exposed to sun until then. Just saying. Interesting assertion, ynot . . . that is, how can you know about a first exposure to the sun? I don't consider shark tooth hill teeth, recently excavated, to be white. I have more than a few fossils that evidence subaerial exposure before burial (or re-burial); but, the white I'm thinking of is chalk-white, on the way to destruction. http://pristis.wix.com/the-demijohn-page What seest thou else In the dark backward and abysm of time? ---Shakespeare, The Tempest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ynot Posted February 1, 2018 Share Posted February 1, 2018 1 hour ago, Harry Pristis said: Interesting assertion, ynot . . . that is, how can you know about a first exposure to the sun? I don't consider shark tooth hill teeth, recently excavated, to be white. I have more than a few fossils that evidence subaerial exposure before burial (or re-burial); but, the white I'm thinking of is chalk-white, on the way to destruction. The teeth I was referring to came out of the lower santa margarita sandstone in Scotts valley. The white teeth I found there were well underground and had not been exposed since original burial. I agree that sun bleaching (and acidic rain) can cause colored teeth to turn white, but that is not the only cause for fossil teeth to be white. I have watched the colored teeth from STH turn white rapidly after exposure, but that is not what I was referencing. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goatinformationist Posted February 2, 2018 Share Posted February 2, 2018 I have found white and black teeth in phosphate pits and black teeth in white clay (kaolin) mine pits. Lots and lots of both. There must be more to this story. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry Pristis Posted February 2, 2018 Share Posted February 2, 2018 1 hour ago, goatinformationist said: I have found white and black teeth in phosphate pits and black teeth in white clay (kaolin) mine pits. Lots and lots of both. There must be more to this story. There is more to it, I agree. I have been in the mine cut, at the water level, and pulled teeth with jet-black enameloid from clay pockets just inches from the permeable matrix containing the routine beige-color teeth. But, both of these variants had white roots. When I talk about white teeth, I am talking about teeth with a color tint to neither the enameloid nor to the root, or in transition thereto. Sun-bleached all. http://pristis.wix.com/the-demijohn-page What seest thou else In the dark backward and abysm of time? ---Shakespeare, The Tempest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ynot Posted February 2, 2018 Share Posted February 2, 2018 40 minutes ago, Harry Pristis said: When I talk about white teeth, I am talking about teeth with a color tint to neither the enameloid nor to the root, I was not considering the root, just the crown parts. The roots (when present) did have color to them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Dente Posted February 2, 2018 Share Posted February 2, 2018 I did an experiment many years ago. I took a dozen teeth from the Lee Creek Mine that were all a very similar color. I glued 6 to a board and put it on my roof for a year and the other 6 I glued to a similar board and put them in a closet in the dark. After year the ones on the roof were slightly different in color from the ones kept inside in the dark. I have found large teeth at the mine that were partially exposed to the elements and the exposed parts were a different color than the buried parts. I don’t think exposure to the sun will bleach a dark tooth white, there are minerals in the tooth that give it color and unless those minerals are leached out, a dark tooth will continue to have some color. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miocene_Mason Posted February 2, 2018 Author Share Posted February 2, 2018 I remember someone @mrieder79 posted a meg from the meg shelf (100 ft underwater where he was diving) off the coast of Georgia that’s white on the blade. I doubt the sun would bleach it that far down in muddy water, but heavy current was referenced. Maybe that wore the color off? The tooth looks pretty unworn though serrations are fine.... Happy hunting, Mason Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miocene_Mason Posted February 2, 2018 Author Share Posted February 2, 2018 15 hours ago, Harry Pristis said: I wouldn't call it a "white" tooth. Well if it isn’t white than what is it? Happy hunting, Mason Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doushantuo Posted February 2, 2018 Share Posted February 2, 2018 Not trying to be cute here, but color is mostly referenced to (in geological samples) by using the Munsell colour chart. To give you some objectivity in the description (or circumscription) of colour. ("I'm telling you, it was about midway between burgundy and cherry-red"). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ynot Posted February 2, 2018 Share Posted February 2, 2018 There are some mineral compounds that are light sensitive. Think about the processes of photography. (old style, not modern digital type.) There are others that are water sensitive and will change as they dry out after exposure to air. I agree with @Al Dente that exposure to the sun will not , by itself, cause a tooth (fossil) to decompose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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