Police were called and the mummified corpse was taken to the Los Angeles coroner's office. On December 9, Dr. Joseph Choi conducted an autopsy and determined that the body was that of a human male who had died of a gunshot wound to the chest. The body was completely petrified, covered in wax and had been covered with layers of phosphorus paint. It weighed approximately 50 pounds (23 kg) and was 63 inches (160 cm) in height. Some hair was still visible on the sides and back of the head while the ears, big toes and fingers were missing. The examination also revealed incisions from his original autopsy and embalming. Tests conducted on the tissue showed the presence of arsenic which was a component of embalming fluid until the late 1920s. Tests also revealed tuberculosis in the lungs which McCurdy had developed while working as a miner, bunions and scars that McCurdy was documented to have had. While the bullet that caused the fatal wound was presumably removed during the original autopsy, the bullet jacket was found. It was determined to be a gas check, which were first used in 1905 until 1940. These clues helped investigators pinpoint the era in which the man had been killed. Further clues to the man's identity were found when the mandible was removed for dental analysis. Inside the mouth was a 1924 penny and ticket stubs to the 140 W. Pike, Side Show and Louis Sonney's Museum of Crime. Investigators contacted Dan Sonney who confirmed that the body was Elmer McCurdy. Forensic anthropologist Dr. Clyde Snow was then called in to help make a positive identification. Dr. Snow took radiographs of the skull and placed them over a photo of McCurdy taken at the time of his death in a process called superimposition. Snow was able to determine that skull was that of Elmer McCurdy.