Cemented sand... as in someone put it in cement, or rock became cement?
If the rock became cement, then wouldn't that mean it came from a shark biting a whale in the ear? Why would they be together otherwise?
Helen, the area where these were found used to be an ancient sea bed. Over millions of years, bones, shells, coral and shed shark teeth fell to the bottom and were covered by hundreds of feet of sand. Along came 2 tectonic plates fighting for the same place. The sea bottom was pushed upwards, well above sea level. More millions of years of pressure, heat and minerals in solution percolating down through the sand turned the sand into sandstone. Soft enough to be easily scraped away from the fossils enclosed in it. When I collected this piece, there was just a little bit of whale bone showing. Sandstone was carefully removed with dental and clay modeling tools and a couple of worn out tooth brushes.
When I started cleaning this piece, I had no idea that the shark tooth was there. Once I spotted it, I left enough sandstone in place to hold it where it was found. At one point, the shark tooth popped loose from the sandstone. 2 tiny drops of super glue and careful placement of the tooth, and you can't tell it ever came loose.
