AMNH-IP-Columbia University Collection

 

Curation and Conservation of Columbia University Fossil Invertebrate Collection at the AMNH, Summer 2024 (A Pilot Project)





Columbia University Collection - Curation and Conservation - 2024

Week 3

This week we thought we would show you a step-by-step of how we have been taught to clean the specimens! First, we use a variety of tools (soot sponges, softer sponges, paint brushes, a vacuum) to brush away any dust and grime that has accumulated over the years the specimens have been stored. We do the same to the specimen labels, in addition to wrapping them in protective sleeves to ensure their longevity. Next, we cut out orange specimen numbers and matching QR codes and apply archival adhesive to attach the orange specimen numbers to each fossil. The two pictures at the very end of this series show the before and after of the specimen label cleaning process!



After we clean, rehouse, and label the specimens, we photograph and add the specimens to the KE EMu database. It is sometimes challenging to make-out the old cursive writing, so we have to do a little digging through old files to make out the applicable information. The image on the right shows four clean, catalogued drawers ready to be returned to their respective cabinets. This week we wrapped up the Ordovician old museum display specimens and moved onto the Devonian old museum display specimens, nearly 50 million years younger!
On Wednesday, we took tours of Invertebrate Zoology at AMNH! Corey Smith showed us the coleoptera (beetles!) and Laura Rincon-Rodriguez showed us the mollusks and nudibranchs. We are always so excited to see what the other divisions at AMNH are all about!
As usual, we have been keeping up with our long walks and hiked down to the 9/11 memorial on Sunday last weekend, before continuing on to Battery Park at the very southernmost point of Manhattan. We love to walk through Central Park on our way home from the museum, enjoying the quiet break from the bustle of the city. The sunsets are always gorgeous, and we have been happening upon live music at night. Each week passes faster and faster and we are making sure to get the most out of this incredible experience!

Specimen images: Courtesy of AMNH

Comments

  1. Iphigene'sDreamJuly 26, 2024 at 9:55 PM

    What a remarkable transformation, between the old, dark, deteriorating labels, and the cleaned, brightened, LEGIBLE labels! To say nothing of the cleaned, cared for, and curated specimens themselves. It's quite a work-flow. You must get utterly absorbed in these tasks!
    Glad that you continue to explore the important monuments, treasures, and Life of NYC.

    ReplyDelete

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