Hot take: My backyard dig turned up a cool fossil

I was planting some flowers and hit a weird looking rock with my shovel. It has these spiral patterns that make me think it's an ammonite fossil. What's a safe way to get the dirt off without hurting it?

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3 Comments

caseybutler7mo ago

That's so cool, is it an ammonite? Found a small one in my garden last year. Used a soft toothbrush and water, worked okay.

4

brown.jenny7mo ago

My dad tried cleaning a fossil once with a wire brush. He thought it was just a weird rock in the concrete of our old patio. Took off half the detail before he realized it was actually something. We just have a smooth stone patch now.

8

mila_murray7mo ago

The soft toothbrush idea is smart... my uncle did the wire brush thing too and it just made me sad for the lost detail.

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