How to get a piece of human bone clean?

Question

Would soap and water hurt it? It's old bone and human if that matters.

It is a piece of my dads arm he lost in vietnam that he left me after he died.

Answer 1

Boil it in water.

Answer 2

First of all, don't boil or bleach bone! Boiling causes fat to soak into the bone, resulting in a greasy, yellowish specimen. Superficial grease can be removed with ammonia and certain industrial solvents, but this is an unpleasant process and cannot remove deep grease which will eventually migrate to the bone surface. Chlorine based bleach irreparably damages the bone itself, resulting in chalky, weak, extremely porous specimens that will turn to bone meal with age.

So, how do you really clean bone?

Maceration - Using bacterial action to clean bone

This is the simplest method of cleaning bone.

Remove any remaining tissue or hide from the bone

Immerse the bone in a container of water.

Leave the container in a warm location where you won't mind the smell.

Periodically pour the greasy, smelly water out (gardens love it!) and replace with fresh water.

When the water runs clear, the bacteria have run their course.

Soak the bone in regular drugstore strength hydrogen peroxide until it reaches the whiteness you prefer. This also sterilizes the bone.

You're done!