Iron Stromatolites (ME2)

$485.00

We are the ONLY original source for this material. Virtually every piece on the market in the last 50 years was excavated by us from our site, the one and only location where these incredible fossils are found. We closed and buried the site in the late 1990s. The fossils shown here are from the last shipment of specimens sent from the site. These white fossil ferns on black shale are completely natural! The unique preservation results from a rare mineral replacement of the plant tissue. They are found in only one small location of only a few hundred square yards in an old coal mine in central Pennsylvania. About 300 million years ago the equator cut through the eastern part of North America resulting in tropical environments where early land plants and animals thrived. Ferns comprised the bulk of the primitive forest, eventually piling up in thick layers that were subsequently compacted into immense deposits of coal.

 

NOTE: Two sided specimen. An attractive and informative display card accompanies the specimen.

 

SIZE: 9″ x 4″ x 1/2″

 

NAME: Alethopteris
AGE: Carboniferous Period – 305 million years
UNIT: Llewellyn Formation
SITE: Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania

 

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1 in stock

SKU: ME2 Categories: , Tags: ,

Description

We have been collecting and researching these ancient specimens from the Iron Range since the 1970s. Once called cryptozoans (due to the strange nature of their occurrence), stromatolites are the oldest fossils known. They are aquatic (mostly marine) colonial living structures built by photosynthesizing bacteria. Stromatolites formed the first biologic reefs in the oceans and are largely responsible for creating the first oxygen atmosphere on Earth. As a result they also indirectly concentrated all the most important iron ore deposits. These simple prokaryotes were the dominant life form on our planet for over 3 billion years. Today they are nearly extinct but still hang on it certain locations like Shark Bay, Australia. We still collect these from the various Iron Ranges in Minnesota. Very large slabs up to 3′ x 4′ are available by Special Order and start at $1,000 per square foot. Cut boulders are also available on rare occasion.
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NOTE: Beautiful deep red agatization in these colonies attest to the classic origin of this specimen as being from the old Mary Ellen Mine in Biwabik, Minnesota, the type locality for the Biwabik Iron Formation. The mine shut down over 50 years ago. Notice the off-set angle of the growth pattern in this piece. This is attributed to constant water currents in the area where these colonies were growing. *This specimen comes with a Certificate of Authenticity and Origin

SIZE: 4″ x 7″ x .3″

Name: Collenia undosa
Unit: Biwabik Iron Formation
Site: Biwabik Iron Range, Minnesota