Excavations

Showing results in 'Publications'. Show all posts
Araújo, R., Mateus O., Walen A., & Christiansen N. (2009).  Preparation techniques applied to a stegosaurian Dinosaur from Portugal. Journal of Paleontological Techniques. 5, 1-24., Jan Abstractarajomateusetal2009.preparationtechn.pdfWebsite

General vertebrate paleontological techniques that have been used in the Museum of Lourinhã (Portugal) are presented here, in particular those applied to a stegosaurian dinosaur skeleton, Miragaia longicollum. A monolith jacket technique using polyurethane foam and plaster is presented. Mechanical preparation
techniques combining the use of an electric grinder and airscribes proved effective during the initial phases of preparation on well-preserved bone embedded in hard matrix. We also present a technique to mould monoliths in the early stages of preparation, creating a thin silicone rubber mould in several contiguous
parts. To mould and cast monoliths before removing individual bones has proven valuable for the preservation of taphonomic data and for display purposes. Polyurethane resin combined with plaster is useful for small casts, while polyester resin applied in four layers is the preferred technique for larger casts.
The four layers are composed of: a first thin layer of polyester resin with bone colour; followed by another layer of polyester resin of sediment colour and containing glass microspheres to make it thicker. The third layer is composed of fibre glass chopped strands, and the fourth is composed of fibre glass mats embedded
in plain polyester resin. 3D scanning and digitization techniques where tested for the storage of osteological information of individual bones and proved very promising.

Mateus, O., & Araújo R. (2008).  Stone-splitters and expansive demolition agents: breaking big rocks with little effort on vertebrate paleontological excavations. Journal of Paleontological Techniques. 3, 1-6. Abstractmateus__araujo_2008_stone-splitters_and_expansive_demolition_agents_jpt_n003_oct.pdfWebsite

Two techniques (stone-splitters and demolition agents) are revealed to be efficient methods for breaking large stone blocks in extreme paleontological excavation. In certain conditions – where security factors, permission issues, terrain conditions, rock properties are problematic – the traditional methods for breaking large rock blocks cannot be applied (e.g. crane trucks or explosives). Using an expansive demolition agent or stone-splitters after drilling equidistant holes not only allows a cheap, quick and safe solution but also permits precise removal of up to 9 ton blocks. Stone-splitters are a three-part tool that when inserted linearly and equidistantly along a brittle rock mass cause a precise fracture.