Finished Pig Skull

As you can see, the bones became lighter in colour after they dried.

I used an elastic band to hold the two halves of the mandible together. A LOT of connective tissue was lost through boiling, Many of the bones that seemed fused before boiling, came apart after.

Now it's glued back together as best as I could. The parts became VERY brittle and cracked easily as I was reassembling them. I think it's because the pig had been roasted THEN boiled. Next time, I'll use a pig's head that HASN'T been roasted first!

Back view

The finished skull.

Boiling a Pig's Head and Some of My Skull Collection

I was given a pig's head from a pig roast that I had attended with my boyfriend.

I removed the skin and as much soft tissue items I could with a knife and by hand.

Then I put the skull in a pot and boiled it for around 3 hours.

I didn't photograph the icky job of removing the sinuses, brain and other lovely things......but the bones fell apart while I was doing this. So, I'm going to wait until they're dry, then glue the parts back together.

Here are some other skulls I have acquired in the past. on top is a brown bear, which I purchased, but had to soak in liquid dish soap because it was greasy. Beneath that is the cow moose I was given many years ago, then below is a female deer and a Jackal! The jackal I bought from a shop that deals in such things. The tiny skull is my Striped Skunk "Bone Clones" replica skull. I ordered it from the Skulls Unlimited website.

Here's my male deer, complete with antlers.

Some people think I'm strange because I collect animal skulls, but I think they look beautiful, and I am an artist, so I learn more about form by studying their structure.