| theboneman.com |
| ABOUT BONE BUILDING |
Skeleton articulation, or bone building as I call it, is the process of converting a dead animal into
a skeleton and then assembling that skeleton into a, hopefully, anatomically correct posture. The
process consists of converting the whole animal to clean bones which can be done using many
different methods, ranging from letting the carcass rot above ground to soaking the bones in
nasty chemicals. Each method has its advantages, disadvantages, and proponents who will
strongly favor one method over another. For school use, some methods work much better than
others.
After the flesh is removed, the bones often need to be further prepared by degreasing and
bleaching. This gives the bones a long term, clean, white look as opposed to being, greasy, and
dirty looking as some prepared skeletons look after a bit of time.
Then the bones are assembled--or articulated. This process is much like assembling a full-scale
model with bones being fastened to other bones by various means including glues, pins, wires
and steel rods. Usually the skeletons are solidly fastened together but options can include
skeletons that are made to bend at the joints or skeletons that come apart so they can go back
into a box after assembly.
The methods of cleaning and articulation can vary greatly depending on the size, maturity, and
species of the animal, the end result desired, and the purpose of the project. Is this going to be a
classroom project good for a grade or a museum quality mount good for 100 years? The
difference being how much care gets put into preparing the skeleton and how securely the bones
are fastened together.
a skeleton and then assembling that skeleton into a, hopefully, anatomically correct posture. The
process consists of converting the whole animal to clean bones which can be done using many
different methods, ranging from letting the carcass rot above ground to soaking the bones in
nasty chemicals. Each method has its advantages, disadvantages, and proponents who will
strongly favor one method over another. For school use, some methods work much better than
others.
After the flesh is removed, the bones often need to be further prepared by degreasing and
bleaching. This gives the bones a long term, clean, white look as opposed to being, greasy, and
dirty looking as some prepared skeletons look after a bit of time.
Then the bones are assembled--or articulated. This process is much like assembling a full-scale
model with bones being fastened to other bones by various means including glues, pins, wires
and steel rods. Usually the skeletons are solidly fastened together but options can include
skeletons that are made to bend at the joints or skeletons that come apart so they can go back
into a box after assembly.
The methods of cleaning and articulation can vary greatly depending on the size, maturity, and
species of the animal, the end result desired, and the purpose of the project. Is this going to be a
classroom project good for a grade or a museum quality mount good for 100 years? The
difference being how much care gets put into preparing the skeleton and how securely the bones
are fastened together.
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