Earwax was removed from the ear of an elderly man and examined by SEM at a low accelerating voltage without any preparatory steps except gold coating. The particle, which has a corpuscular structure, contains embedded fine hairs from the hearing canal. Accumulation of earwax may severely impair hearing. Enhanced SEM. Image width: 3.21 mm. Magnification: 31x if the image is printed 10 cm wide.