Fossil and other items fournd in the fossil and gemstone buckets

We have all sorts of gemstones in the buckets and when you find them our Assayers will be glad to tell you what they are.

Crinoids Stem

An animal which lived on the seafloor and was attached to the bottom by the stem.   Related to the modern Sea Star (Star Fish) and lived during the Missippipian period of the Paleozoic Era.

Ammonite

Originating from within the bactritoid nautiloids, the ammonoid cephalopods first appeared in the Late Silurian to Early Devonian (circa 400 million years ago) and became extinct close to the Cretaceous (65 million years ago) along with the dinosaurs. The Ammonites closest living relative is the subclass Coleoidea which is made up of octopus, squid and cuttlefish, not the Nautilus which they resemble.

Nautiloid

Nautiloids are often found as fossils in early Paleozoic rocks.  They are very closely related to the Ammonite on the previous page.  The samples we have were found in Morocco fossilized in Marble. In the picture we also have an Ammonite from the same marble mine. (the round one)

Brachiopod

Brachiopods are a phylum of animals resembling clams to which they are not closely related. The oldest known fossils were found in Lower Cambrian rocks dating about 550 million years ago. Most orders of brachiopods have been extinct since the end of the Paleozoic Era, but we still have living brachiopods.

Sharks Teeth

Sharks may have up to 3,000 teeth at one time. Sharks teeth are modified scales that have the same structure as a tooth.  Sharks teeth are not made for chewing, but for tearing. Their teeth are in rows, most have five rows, as one tooth is lost another takes it place and a new one starts growing in the last place. A modern shark can go through over 20,000 teeth in a lifetime.  Sharks have been around for about 25 million years.

Arrow Heads

Arrow heads are sharpened or flint knapped stones.  Prehistoric peoples often used various stone spear heads and arrow heads for their weapons and hunting tools.   While these arrow heads are formed much in the same way as prehistoric man formed theirs, these were all made in modern times.

Indian Script Stone

This is a rock that very little is known about – it has several names: Mariam, Arabic Script Stone, and Elephant Skin Jasper.  Some people say it’s Jasper and others say that it is fossil shell fragments in a Hematite Matrix.   Some say it’s made up of fossil grass.   For a while we called this the unknown stone and while we now have names to go with it, it still remains the Unknown Stone. It may even be a form of Graptolites which are fossils that appear to be writing on stone and its name is Greek for “stone Writing”.

Shiva Linghams

The Shiva Lingham stone is from the sacred Narmada River in Onkar Mandhata, one of India’s seven holy sites.  Villagers gather this unique Crypto-crystalline quartz (a form of jasper with impurities) from the shallow riverbeds.  Naturally formed, Lingham describes their egg-like shape.

Geodes

Geodes are geological rock formations which occur in sedimentary and certain volcanic rocks.  Geodes are rock cavities with internal crystal formations or concentric banding.  The exterior is generally limestone.  When you find a Geode take it home wrap it in cloth and break it with a hammer to get to the inside.

Water Buffalo Teeth

The Water Buffalo is not related to the American Buffalo or Bison which is more closely related to cattle. 95% of the world’s population of Water Buffalo’s is in Asia.  Most all the Water Buffalo in the US is for the making of mozzarella cheese which comes from the milk of Water Buffalo. 5% of the world Milk comes from Water Buffalo.

Trilobites

Trilobites are extinct, hard-shelled animals that lived in the seas millions of years ago. They evolved at the beginning of the Paleozoic era (over 500 million years ago) and went extinct during the late Permian period (248 million years ago). The Cambrian Period is known as "The Age of Trilobites."

Trilobites were very common with over 17,000 species of trilobites . Some trilobites crawled along the sea floor, some swam, and others drifted with the currents. The different trilobite species may have had different diets; some were herbivores (eating plants), some were detrivores (eating decayed material) and some were scavengers (eating carrion).