The Whale Job, Ears and Cold

So the temperature hasn't gotten much above zero since last week, the full skull is sort of on hold. And by that I mean I'm trying to figure out what the hell to do with a foul-smelling chunk of greasy bone for the next 6-8 months. And there's still rebuilding the jaw and filling a few places besides. I did, however, figure out what the two small bits floating around the tub were. I'd assumed they were teeth, but no. Apparently they're tympanic bones, which house the smaller ear bits that you've probably read about in biology class. Sizes vary depending on the species. A blue whale's are roughly the size of your fist. These are about an inch or two long. Asymmetric, which has me wondering if they've been damaged, but from a quick look under peroxide it doesn't look that way. I pulled them out of the ice on the bottom of the tub and soaked them in hot water for a while before dropping them in a plastic thing of 3% hydrogen peroxide.