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LOT 2398
Natural History - Priscacara Fossil Fish
EOCENE PERIOD, 58-36 MILLION YEARS B.P.
6 1/2 x 5 1/4 in. (385 grams, 16.5 x 13.5 cm).
In a rectangular matrix.
ProvenanceLincolnshire, UK, collection.
FootnotesSeasonally, some 56 million years ago, in the Green River Region of Wyoming, torrential rains fell on the mountains. The rain flowed down the
mountain sides, forming wide shallow lakes in the valley below. During the dry season, these lakes evaporated (similar to certain parts of Africa today). Millions of fish died in this short period of time. This climatic cycle happened over a 20-thousand-year period. Layer upon layer of mud was deposited over these years, entombing huge numbers of fish. At a much later date volcanic activity uplifted this area to expose their fossils.
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AUCTIONS:
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Natural History - Fossil Brittle Star and Starfish Pair
Ordovician Age, 450 million years B.P.Sold for (Inc. bp): £26
Comprising a Petraster sp. on a rounded matrix and four Ophiuroidea sp. specimens on an irregular matrix. 1.07 kg total, 12-12.8 cm
From a Lincolnshire, UK, collection. -
Natural History - Large Fossil North African 'T-Rex' Tooth
Cretaceous Period, 145-65 million years B.P.Sold for (Inc. bp): £546
From Carcharodontosaurus saharicus displaying some serrations and partial root. 55 grams, 94 mm
From a Cambridgeshire, UK, collection. -
Natural History - Large Fossil Diplomystus Fish
Eocene Period, 56-33 million years B.P.Sold for (Inc. bp): £33
Set in a rectangular shale matrix. 395 grams, 15.2 cm
From Wyoming, Green River Formation, U.S.A. From an old Bristol, UK, collection.
In southwest Wyoming (and parts of Colorado and Utah) in the Green River Formation are found some of the world's most outstanding specimens of fossil fish. The Green River system was composed of three lakes: Lake Ulinta, Lake Gosiute and Fossil Lake. These Eocene lakes lay in a series of intermountain basins formed by geological events that uplifted the Rocky Mountains during the early Tertiary time. The climate was much different from the desert-like climate of this area today. Both the fauna (crocodiles, alligators, boa constrictors and some subtropical fish families) and the flora (such as large palm trees) indicate a climate much like that found along the Gulf Coast today. Large amounts of ash found in the sediments indicate that volcanoes were particularly active at this time.
