Belemnite trouble

[0dinofthenorth]

I bought some belemnites some time ago. They were a darkish grey colour before we put them in water to clean any dusty sediment off. But when they dried they reacted and went a whitish colour.
We tried putting them in vinegar but it made them slightly worse.
Do you know what I could do to get them looking half decent again?


[Editted by 0dinofthenorth on 07-08-2010 at 12:13 GMT +1]

[0dinofthenorth]

Here's an image of what they look like now, horrible, aren’t they!
Hope you can help!

[masteroffossiles]

it looks like the left/upper one has lost part of the shiny outer shell, so i think that one is beyond repair. but I wash my belemnites in water too, and the ones from south Limburg dry up whitish too, I dont know how to stop it, but maybe if you make them wet again and use a tooth brush to clean them, they may become better.
greetings,
sander

[0dinofthenorth]

Hi masteroffossiles!

We cleaned them with a brush in water, so I don't think it will help. Does it work on your belemnites?
The left/upper one never had all of shiny outer shell, but it was never shiny to begin with. But thanks anyway, it's nice to know other people have the same problem.

[masteroffossiles]

sorry i can't help you further, but maybe other forum members know how to solve the problem.
greetings,
sander