part two of "i_scribble cleans a pig skull!"
OK, some of you may be wondering what tools I am using to clean this skull (and other bones). Here's my current list:
I am also getting to the point where I can't just stand over the sink and scrub the skull and bones anymore. At some point I will be sitting at the table, probably covering it with paper towels, and picking off the last bits with these more precise tools that I have to find.
Anyhoo, to record my progress for posterity:
Your gums really do hold your teeth in place!
I have been scraping away at the connective tissue that held the pig's teeth in place, and as a result many teeth have come out of the skull. These are mostly the front teeth. I know that my pig was not full-grown when he was slaughtered-- I found baby teeth being pushed out by the permanent teeth coming in (I may have lost one of them down the drain). If the potbellied pig links I found are any indication, my pig was probably 12-15 months old. In human terms, that's probably a young pre-teen.
BRAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIINS!
Alas, I did not clean out the cranial cavity as well as I hoped. Did you know that brains and major nerves, like spinal cords, become sort-of rubbery and translucent when boiled? I didn't. The solid nature of the neural tissue is making it more difficult to extract. This is one of the reasons I will need to sit down and work at the skull on the table.
As a side note, the toothbrush I am using (one of those child-size cheapo freebies that the dentist gives you) is small enough to fit inside the spinal column, where the spinal cord used to be. This helped me remove the spinal cord and other tissue. Heh.
Nose jobs: so NOT "The Swan" or "Nip/Tuck"
One of the things that I've discovered is that the more I clean the skull, the more comfortable I am being around it and the less it looks like the head that I started with. One of the things that kept the pig impression for the longest time was the nose. I finally cooked the skull long enough that the nasal cartilage loosened and I could snap it off. This is when I realized that the nasal cartilage actually went up fairly deep into the nasal cavity. I got a fair bit of it out, but not all of it (yet another reason I need to sit down with the skull). I also have something in common with the pig-- we both have (or in its case, had) a deviated septum.
Those are the big things. I have been changing the water every thirty minutes or so, cleaning the skull as I waited for the fresh water to heat up. It's about time to pull it out of the pot again; this will be the third time (I think) that I've done so. More later...
- a toothbrush
- a bottle brush
- a scrubby pad
- a spoon
- a fondue fork
- a kabob skewer
- a knife
- my fingernails
- dishwashing detergent
- a very large stock pot
- a small colander, used as a rack in the pot to lift the skull off of the heating element
- a strainer, to catch teeth when I drain the pot
I am also getting to the point where I can't just stand over the sink and scrub the skull and bones anymore. At some point I will be sitting at the table, probably covering it with paper towels, and picking off the last bits with these more precise tools that I have to find.
Anyhoo, to record my progress for posterity:
Your gums really do hold your teeth in place!
I have been scraping away at the connective tissue that held the pig's teeth in place, and as a result many teeth have come out of the skull. These are mostly the front teeth. I know that my pig was not full-grown when he was slaughtered-- I found baby teeth being pushed out by the permanent teeth coming in (I may have lost one of them down the drain). If the potbellied pig links I found are any indication, my pig was probably 12-15 months old. In human terms, that's probably a young pre-teen.
BRAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIINS!
Alas, I did not clean out the cranial cavity as well as I hoped. Did you know that brains and major nerves, like spinal cords, become sort-of rubbery and translucent when boiled? I didn't. The solid nature of the neural tissue is making it more difficult to extract. This is one of the reasons I will need to sit down and work at the skull on the table.
As a side note, the toothbrush I am using (one of those child-size cheapo freebies that the dentist gives you) is small enough to fit inside the spinal column, where the spinal cord used to be. This helped me remove the spinal cord and other tissue. Heh.
Nose jobs: so NOT "The Swan" or "Nip/Tuck"
One of the things that I've discovered is that the more I clean the skull, the more comfortable I am being around it and the less it looks like the head that I started with. One of the things that kept the pig impression for the longest time was the nose. I finally cooked the skull long enough that the nasal cartilage loosened and I could snap it off. This is when I realized that the nasal cartilage actually went up fairly deep into the nasal cavity. I got a fair bit of it out, but not all of it (yet another reason I need to sit down with the skull). I also have something in common with the pig-- we both have (or in its case, had) a deviated septum.
Those are the big things. I have been changing the water every thirty minutes or so, cleaning the skull as I waited for the fresh water to heat up. It's about time to pull it out of the pot again; this will be the third time (I think) that I've done so. More later...