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MUSEUM GRADE
MASSIVE EOCENE PERIOD PLAGIOLOPHUS PRIMITIVE THREE-TOED HORSE FOSSIL
BONE BED IN MATRIX
France
MIDDLE EOCENE
PERIOD: 48 million years ago
Primitive horse fossils
are usually limited to isolated finds of teeth and some bones.
These fossils are often from either the Pliocene or Miocene Periods.
This is an extremely rare fossil of a primitive three-toed horse from
BEFORE these periods. And rather than a single bone or tooth, it
is a densely packed fossil bed of the prehistoric little primitive horse
Plagiolophus. It dates to the Eocene Era which is the FIRST
geologic period of the emergence of the horse! This specimen is an
incredibly large UNBROKEN bone bed loaded with fossil bones, teeth and a
mandible in pristine preservation. This is a spectacular
exhibition-grade fossil appropriate for the finest museum collections.
It could be a valuable example of Eocene mammalian evolution or a
cornerstone specimen of horse evolution and early development. Its
unusually large size and plate-like, flat nature make it easy to exhibit
on a wall thereby not requiring any valuable floor display space.
This remarkable specimen
was prepared by us and is
100% natural with NO REPAIR,
FABRICATION OR COMPOSITING OF FOSSIL ON THIS ORIGINAL MATRIX PLATE.
The matrix is UNBROKEN and completely original to the bones as quarried
from the ground.
THIS IS NOT A GROUND-UP
ARTIFICIAL MATRIX-BED WITH INSERTED FOSSILS AS SO MANY FOSSIL PANEL
MOUNTS ARE. For
the fossil collecting purist and fanciers of extraordinarily rare
fossils, this is THE specimen ready to exhibit. It could also be a
breath-taking display specimen not just for a museum or fossil collector
but for anyone who appreciates horses. A specimen like this would
make a perfect feature display on the premises of a horse-breeder or
equestrian estate. Most people do not realize that the earliest of
primitive horses like this specimen was about the size of a modern fox
and date back to 60 million years ago.
Numerous extremely well
preserved and important fossils of this horse species can be found
naturally associated together in this preserved bone bed. There is
a large mandible with all the original molars still in place.
There are also several other individual teeth from various jaw positions
including incisors and molars with their full crown and root.
There are portions of other mandibles and part of a maxilla also
present. Numerous limb bones can be seen, as well. The
natural dark espresso brown of the fossils contrasts exceptionally well
with the light ivory white color of the original stone matrix. The
edges of the slab even show embedded bones that have been sawn through
during the extraction of this slab. The back side is ground flat
and has been reinforced with epoxy for safe handling and display.
This is a perfect specimen for wall display and all it needs are some
custom brackets to hold it in place on any flat vertical surface.
This is a one-of-a-kind specimen of both great scientific importance as
well as exhibition visual appeal. It's a rare pleasure to be able
to prepare and offer to our clients a piece that is equally at home in
an important museum collection as well as being an aesthetic beauty for
the private collector.
The ancestry of the
modern horse, Equus, can be first traced back to the Eocene Period 60
million years go to a little multi-toed horse-like creature not any
larger than a fox. This earliest of horse was a flexible and
likely very nimble animal that ran on five-toed feet. Over a
period of tens of millions of years, several species developed and the
body size of the horse increased and became more robust. The feet
developed then into three-toed limbs and eventually, horses with a
single hoof emerged. Domestication of the horse has led to a
dizzying array of breeds but none that resemble what the prehistoric
horses would have exactly looked like. There is one surviving
species, though. The
Przewalski's Horse is the
last surviving wild horse species and cave paintings in France made by
Upper Paleolithic humans exactly resemble this beautiful and unique
creature as they exist today.
AN EXTREMELY RARE
PRIMITIVE HORSE FOSSIL FROM A VERY EARLY PERIOD OF HORSE EVOLUTION -
IMPORTANT AND VISUALLY STRIKING MUSEUM SPECIMEN
100% NATURAL WITH NO
REPAIR AND NO RESTORATION TO THIS GIANT INTACT SLAB
37" x 19.25" overall and
averaging 1.5" thick with a flat reinforced back
$3995
H001
INCLUDES STAND Actual
Item - One Only
Overall
thickness is fairly even at 1.5" making this a perfect candidate to hang
on a wall
SPECIAL
CRATING AND TRUCK FREIGHT (OR AIR FREIGHT IF INTERNATIONAL) WILL APPLY
TO THIS SPECIMEN
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