I have a human skeleton which is pieced together for display purposes. It looks very real and does not appear to be artificial. How can I test myself if it is a real or fake skeleton?

I found this article on testing ivory which suggests you can use the same method for testing bone. It's called the 'hot pin test'. Since natural bone is resistant to heat it shouldn't melt but should give off certain aromas etc. I hope that this helps.

You need to scroll ot the bottom of the article for the details on the testing procedure.

http://www.wikihow.com/Tell-Ivory-from-Bone

Thanks Wendypj, this looks like a good test! Since it is about ivory I'll start with a tooth. Gruesome thought to poke a hot needle in a tooth.
I will let you know the results.

Any other suggestion is also appreciated.

If the bones are brownish, it's probably real. The one and a half skeletons I got a group of cadets to put together were very brown. (Didn't tell them there was more than one set there. They found out, though. The adults had far more trouble and tried to get every bone in somehow! No Frankensteins in that group...) Artificial bones tend to be rather white.

Human bones (like animal bones) can be bleached. I would recommend that you contact someone who can actually perform some tests for you or someone who has expertise in this field.