"Use of Mineral Oil in Curation of Ancient Artifacts"

"A Collector's Guide to the Use of Mineral Oil in the Curation of CertainStone Ancient Artifacts"
Disclaimer- "I am not a chemist or geologist. I am not qualified to explain the technical details regarding theeffects of the use of mineral oil. I am merelysharing my personalexperiencein the use of mineral oil in the curation of authentic ancient artifacts."
I. Definition
Mineral oil or liquid petroleum is a by product in the distillation of petroleum to produce gasoline and other petroleum based products from crude oil. It is a transparent colorless oil. Mineral oil is inexpensive and produced in very large quantities. Mineral oil is available in light and heavy grades and can often be found in drug and grocery stores.
The term "mineral oil" or "rock oil" was first used in the late 1800s, to describe petroleum hydrocarbons and associated products that were produced from wellsthat tapped underground reservoirs. The term differentiated petroleum hydrocarbons produced fromunderground sources from other gemon oil sources at the time such as "palm" oil or "whale" oil.
-credit "Wikipedia"
II.Application in the Curation of Certain Ancient Stone Artifacts
Weatheringisan environmentalprocess that occurs when rocks and minerals are exposedtooutsideagents such as sun,wind, rain and changes in temperature over time.Stone oftentimes seems to reactwhen exposed to some of these agents over time by "drying out" or losingmoisture.
Mineral oil is ideal for the curation of certain stone artifacts becauseit has been repeatedly demonstrated to be "non-reactive."This means that mineral oilwill not harm (either internally or externally) the stone that your artifact is made of as long as it's surfaces are secure. I define secure as being an artifact with solid surfacesthat are not exfoliating (shedding) or chalky.
The beauty of some stonesseems tobe significantly enhanced after immersion in mineral oil.Opaque stones can begee translucent and stones that are white can begee quite colorful. This effect seems to occur because nature abhors a vacuum. The oil is drawn (sometimes quickly,sometimes slowly)into the space between thestones molecules. This apparently facilitates the transfer of light causing some stonesattractiveness to be enhanced.
III. Concluding Thoughts
It is my position that in the vast majority of cases it is most desirable to curate authentic old artifacts in as close to "as found" condition as possible. I generallyclean them with a mild dish detergent and a small soft (children's) toothbrush. Inext pat them dry with a paper towel and allow them to air dry overnight before casing them.
However,sometimeswhen Ifind myself handlingmoregemon point typesmade of hard semiprecious stones such as agatesI willoccasionally immersea point in mineral oil. Before doing this Iclean the surface of the point and examine it with a magnifying glass in hard sunlight in order tomake sure that it has not been modern altered or "rechipped" in any way.
One of the drawbacks of purchasing points (especially those made of agatized coral) that have been immersed in mineral oil is that unscrupulous and unknowing individuals will sometimesimmerse points in order to effectively hide the evidence of their work.
Another drawback is thatmost stones "dry" back out over time after having been immersed and will need to be reimmersed in order to regain their color and translucence.
One of the pros of immersing select points in mineral oil is that it enhances their beauty and can easily be removed with acetone (nail polish remover).Your wife daughter motheror sisterprobablykeeps some "close at hand."
Please, note thattreatingartifacts made of sandstone (and otherporus stones) with mineral oilwillpotentiallyDAMAGE them!
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Thank you and
"Enjoy collecting, floridagempoints!"