OUR LARGEST EVER MASSIVE LYTOCERAS AMMONITE ON GIANT HOLZMADEN SHALE SLAB

Holzmaden Black Shale Formation (Lias Epsilon) - Stuttgart, Germany

JURASSIC PERIOD:  200 million years ago

From the world-renown Black Jurassic oil-bearing shale of Holzmaden, Germany comes this MONSTROUS and exquisitely preserved Lytoceras trautscholdi species ammonite.  Specimens like this are now becoming quite rare as almost all quarrying operations in the formation have ceased.  It is likely, Holzmaden fossils of exceptional quality like this breath-taking example will appreciate in the future as demand far outstrips supply.  Holzmaden is a highly unique formation, famous for producing some of the world's finest Jurassic marine life fossils.  Modern quarry efforts have failed to produce many specimens like this that were once found in greater frequency years ago.  If you are an advanced ammonite collector wanting one of the rarest possible ammonite specimens from one of the world's rarest and most coveted Jurassic provenances, then this specimen poses a VERY UNIQUE opportunity for you.  If you wish to accent a room with one of nature's most beautiful prehistoric masterpieces, then this fossil would really set off any interior.  

This is THE largest Lytoceras specimen from Holzmaden we have ever offered to date.  This species is more rare than the more prevalent Harpoceras or Dactylioceras ammonites found in the formation.  The entire ammonite is complete and possesses original gold pyritization to the shell imprint that is so HIGHLY-prized.  This gold tone to the creatures on the slab is COMPLETELY GENUINE AND NATURAL, formed by mineralization as the fossil was formed millions of years ago.  The slab has been chemically sealed to protect and permanently stabilize this rare feature.  NO RESTORATION OR FABRICATION.   Caution should be used when purchasing any large Holzmaden shale fossils.  Most are expertly cut out and glued into a large clean slab that is NOT the original slab in which the fossil was found.  We guarantee this specimen is 100% original!

From ANY location, a Lytoceras this size is beyond 'remarkable' but to come from HOLZMADEN just makes this one heck of a hard specimen for us to part with.  Fossils like this are almost always from advanced private collections or museums.  Quite frankly, a specimen as large and in this state of preservation exceeds what most museums display or have in their collection.

Some of the largest dinosaurs that ever walked the earth were in existence when this Lytoceras ammonite swam in the ancient seas alongside massive plesiosaurs and ichthyosaurs!  

Absolutely our highest recommendation.  Even if you could care less about fossils of any kind, you would be hard-pressed to not find this specimen anything less than breath-taking!

Ammonites are extinct members of the Cephalopod class.  Modern members include nautilus, squid and octopus.  They first appeared during the Silurian Period (435 million to 410 million years ago) and were abundant and widespread in the seas of the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods (175 million to 65 million years ago).  Ammonites are important index fossils—that is, they often link the rock layer in which they are found to specific geological time periods.

Ammonites varied greatly in size.  The largest known as small as 2 cm (0.75 in) in diameter.  During the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, ammonites evolved more streamlined shells for swimming and the structure of the shell became stronger.  Different shell shapes emerged as well, such as snail-like or uncoiled.   

The shells of ammonites had hollow chambers separated by walls called septa.  A tube called the siphuncle, connected the body with the chambers allowing the animal to fill them with water or air, changing its buoyancy in order to rise or drop in the ocean.  Only the last and largest chamber was occupied by the living animal.  

Ammonites probably lived for one to six years, with the majority living two to four years.  They fed on plankton (tiny free-floating organisms), sea lilies, and smaller orthoceras.  Although many fed off the ocean floor, others may have caught plankton while floating or swimming via jet propulsion, expelling water through a funnel-like opening to propel themselves in the opposite direction.

Because ammonites lived exclusively in marine environments, their presence also indicates the location of prehistoric seas.

ULTRA-RARE ALMOST ALL QUARRIES NOW CLOSED - THE LARGEST EXAMPLE WE HAVE EVER LISTED!!!

100% NATURAL, ORIGINAL AND COMPLETE PYRITIZED GIANT LYTOCERAS AMMONITE! 

31" x 27.5" wide, ammonite 12.25" wide

SOLD     AMX-059     INCLUDES STAND     Actual Item - One Only

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