Minature Collection



four inch Phareodus

 It has been a thrill to find the infant fossil fish,the junveniles and the adults.I continue to discover new ways to display all varieties of fossil fish. My latest technique involves sizing down the fossil plates to fit this windowed display. I can display all the same species or I can create a minature collection.

This shows both the top and the front

Left side and front Diplomystus and Phareodus



Left side and back Hypcacantha and Diplymystus



Right side Knigthia and Hypcacantha

2.5 inch Phareodus on the front completes the five species series



Summer 2010 Huge slabs

The summer of 2010 flew by while digging for fossil fish in the Dempsey quarry,northwest of Kemmerer, Wyoming.

These pictures show the quarry wall and the largest single slabs I dug out this summer. Each slab was nearly three feet wide and six feet long. As I seperated them from the wall I had to tumble them to their resting place to dry in the sun. The slabs came in 1 1/2 to 3 inch thickness and they stayed together as I tumbled,drug and slid them around.

The final picture is a palm frond recovered from our dig that will be restored at a later time.

Mioplosus,Restored and Framed

This was once a one piece specimen with minor restoration. It was sold and mailed by UPS to Texas, when the packing container was opened in Texas the fish was broken. Another replacement sample was agreed on and shipped out and the broken diver Mio came back to Wyoming.
The break was backed with birch plywood, glued in place , patching and restoration brought the fish back to near it's original beauty.

I decided to make a walnut frame to enhance and contrast the fish. The brass corner pieces added even another contrast.

The frame is @20 inches long and10 inches wide. The frame is @ 1 1/2 inches thick.

This fossil fish would look nice  on a small easel, leaned on a border, or hung from a secured wall hanger. I used 20 pound steel leaders for hanger wire which is screwed securely into the frame.

Knightia Motion Mural

I often get requests for murals of fossil fish, showing rhythmic motion or different species of fossil fish, yet another favorite is the predatory chasing it's prey, finally the request for aquatic plants or palm pieces and a fish aquarium setting.

These are sometimes inspiring piece but they require so much time in gathering the specimens, arranging, cutting to size, preparing the specimens, backing and gluing into place, grouting the seams, sealing, framing and then making the shipping container. It is little wonder that they are expensive, yet a wonderful investment in natures antiquities.



This was a requested mural showing Knightia in a rhythmic setting, surrounds by a cherry wood frame. The fish plates were glued to a 3/4 inch piece of birch plywood, grouted the seams, then framed.

the frame size is 27 inches long X  7 1/2 inches in width 2 1 1/2 inches thick.

The back is secured by two plate and is equipped for wall hanging.

The plate would be a showy piece on a wall  or could be shown on an easel.

This was an enjoyable project during our monsoonal season in May.

The Last stormy Day of April

The weather lately has been uncooperative to plan anything outdoors, so I decided to take a fishing trip inside. I went through my storage boxes and caught this small string of fosil fish. It is always fun looking through the fish needing preparation. the ones needing little preparation are the easy catches, they are the first to go to the preparation table.

This pair of Knightia took my eye. They will look nice in a verticle or horizontal display.

                                                         I found another pair of small Knightia that seem to be traveling together.

After catching a few Knightia I decided it was time to catch a few Diplomytus. I land three of these delicate beauties.

WOW! What a guy has to do to get in a spring fishing trip

April Ray

A change of pace is always good and a new challenge brings a high level of activity to our mental and physical being. A spring begins to materialize with longer days, a few lingering snow storms, our song birds returning I decided to challenge myself by working on sting ray plates.After going through my boxes of projects  accumulated over the past two seasons I found three possibilities.I chose the ray that would take the most restoration as my first project. This ray needed a great deal of help.
The ray's disk is @ 7 inches in diameter. It is the peel of another project I will bring to life later. In the peel process I ended up with only about half of the ray. So I reconstructed the left side and most of the tail. In the reconstruction of the tail I decides to make it a fat tailed ray. Heliobatis radian was inlaid into a nice banded matrix with a small Knightia  present on the matrix rock. I chose to inlay the ray going the opposite direction of the Knightia. The balance allows a lot of flexibility on how this sample will be displayed. it shows nicely horizontally or vertically.

The overall dimension of the plate is 12 inches wide and 21.5 inches long.

March Madness

After chasing the wee little folks(leprechauns) out of my garge and cleaning up their mess. I found this large plate with a shadow that called out to be discovered.

I tooled off the matrix in sections. Exposing the head and mouth first then the body and the tail.

That matrix and the fish were cooperative and didn't flake away.

Now we can cut the matrix down to suit the size of the fish. It looks like 11x16 inches will house this twelve and half inch fossil fish. Now every thing is ready for the final touches and sealing.
With luck like this I must be part Irish.