Shells can last a very long time if stored properly: Linnaeus' shells are still largely intact after 250 years. Here are a few guidelines that may be useful for long-term storage. (Old-time Conchlers can skip this message; you've read it all before!) As a general rule, if a material sticks to the shell, then it has already chemically reacted with the shell. This includes materials like sticky paper and tape as well as glue. After a chemical reaction, your shell will never be quite the same as it was. If a fibrous material fits tightly into cracks in the shell, then it may gradually break the shell apart as the fibers swell and shrink in response to changes in humidity. Cotton is such a fiber, and should be used with caution in such cases (e.g., fragmented fossils). If the material smells sour, then it is probably giving off acid vapors that will slowly etch shells. Examples: most paper (other than "archival quality" paper), most woods (especially oak). Newspaper is one of the most acidic materials. At the very least, such materials should be ventilated regularly to allow vapors to escape before building up. Use your nose as a guide. Shells naturally have encrustations, borings, marks of healing, and other flaws that may indicate how the animal lived and died. Think twice before removing or repairing them, and make a note of what you did on the label. If you don't know how to remove encrustations (or host rock in the case of fossils), then experiment with a less valuable shell before risking the most valuable one. Acids dissolve molluscan shell as well as encrusting bryozoans, barnacles, etc. You don't have to oil most marine shells. A lot of people don't, as well as most scientific institutions. Some shells do require special care. Always ask if you're not sure how to take care of a shell. When in doubt, like a doctor, "Do no harm." Do keep collection data with your shells. Use archival-quality paper (such as the 100 percent rag paper sold as stationery) and ink (such as black India ink). You don't have to write numbers on the shells if you don't want to; one method of identifying individual shells is to measure them, recording the information on the paper label. (For readers in the USA: A metric ruler or set of calipers is all you will ever need.) If you keep a catalog, make a copy of it. Store one copy with the shell collection itself to make sure they stay together. Let's get back together in the year 3000 and see whose collections are still in good shape! Andrew K. Rindsberg Geological Survey of Alabama