I have a couple of raccoon skulls and I was wondering what the best method is for cleaning them. I have heard of useing maceration, beetles or Sal Soda. thank you
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If you have heard of those methods then what exactly is it you are asking? Would you like to know OTHER methods or would you like to know how to do those methods you listed?
Maceration and dermestid cleaning are considerred the the best professionaly. Sal soda requires a lot of hot water which can be very hard on the sutures of a skull and I tend to avoid that technique.
Other methods of osteological preparation;
Some people bury bones etc to clean them. This relies largely on microbial cleansing and is a slow process with mixed results.
For some of my own pieces I like to put them in a rot box. Essentially - a wood frame covered top and bottom with 1/4 inch hardware cloth. Stake the whole thing securely to the ground if in an area where larger critters could walk off with the box. Into this I will deposit an entire head - don't skin it or anything. This is one of the smelliest ways of doing things and is certainly the most gooey. What it does however is allow the bone to sit in it's own concentrated juices - mmm yummy! WHY would someone want to do this? One reason - colour. My personal preference is to avoid whitenned skulls - I think they look fake *shrugs*. By using a rot box and not prepping the skull - a variety of gorgeous tones and hues stain the bone naturally. If you take the time to prep the head before hand you won't get the same goo and mush and will get a cleaner skull. If you decide you want a really deep brown colour put it in a bag and let it sit for a couple weeks in the heat before opening the bag and letting maggots etc at it.
So it's your choice; the rot box can generate skulls in a variety of colours from deep rich chocolate to a clean natural bone that can be further whitenned artificially if you like. I find this is the absolute easiest way to clean a skull as it really requires no real work on your part - put it in a wire box outside and let nature take its' course!
Maceration can provide the most thorough cleaning as the bacteria get into places that even the smallest dermestid larvae instar cannot.
Beetles can clean things faster than any other method. They are more voracious than maggots and certainly more so than bacteria.
For more complete instructions on these processes; refer to the archives by hitting the orange search button to the left. Use search phrases such as "european mount" "skull cleaning" or "maceration" and you will find ample results.
Hope that helps =)