ABOVE PHOTO SHOWS ARTICULATED METACARPALS AND CLAWS

ULTRA RARE 100% ORIGINAL ARTICULATED LOWER CRETACEOUS PTEROSAUR WING ARM

Santana Formation (Crato Member) - Ceara, Brazil

LOWER CRETACEOUS PERIOD:  110 million years ago

Of all the richest fossil-bearing deposits ever known, Brazil's Santana Formation is ranked among the world's greatest.  Santana fossils are known for not only their extreme diversity but more importantly, for the nature of their breath-taking preservation - considered by scientists to include the finest examples of fossils in existence.  The formation provides an amazing window into the paleobiota of a prehistoric world from the Lower Cretaceous, 110 million years ago.  The Santana fossils of Brazil were first recorded in the year 1828 by two natural historians, Dr. J. B. von Spix and Dr. C. F. P. von Martius, commissioned by the king of Bavaria.  To this day, they are still being studied with many new discoveries coming to light. 
 
Originally acquired from a 70+ year old private European collection of vertebrate Santana fossils that consisted of numerous spectacular quality specimens that go well beyond the quality and completeness of anything we have seen in either private hands or in museum collections.  While these specimens were originally collected in the 1930's before the ban enacted in 1942, they had remained in their raw state "as collected" up until only recently, whereby they were prepared utilizing the most modern laboratory techniques and equipment hence their remarkable state of display.  In comparison, the definitive illustrated work on these fossils, written by curator John G. Maisey titled "Santana Fossils", is illustrated with numerous prized specimens owned by the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in New York. 

Pterosaur remains from the Santana Formation are amongst the rarest of all fossils found there.  The first Santana pterosaur fossils were only published as recently as 1971.  Maisey writes about the pterosaur fossils from Santana, "With regard to the excellent quality of fossil preservation and to the increasing number of pterosaur fossils being collected, the Santana Formation of the Chapada do Araripe has become one of the most important pterosaur localities in the world."  Later in the same chapter he writes, "It is worthwhile to point out that for the morphological study of pterosaurs, the sediments of the Santana Formation are surely one of the most important in the world because the preservation of the material is the best ever reported."  The wealth of recent discoveries from this area has brought forth a host of new and very diverse pterosaur fauna.  The scientific value of the Santana pterosaur fossils is immeasurable with extraordinary new discoveries coming to light at the present moment.  Remains of many new species have and continue to be found in these deposits but these specimens are reserved for scientific study and export by an authorized institution only.  No fossil have been allowed to be legally exported for the private market for several decades.  The only hopes for a private collector to legally own any of the rare pterosaur remains from the Santana Formation is to acquire a specimen from an old private collection but these too, are extremely rare in numbers, rarer than recent finds. 

Of extreme rarity and scientific importance is this remarkably intact and well-preserved partly articulated pterosaur wing arm embedded in its original limestone slab as found.  Pterosaur fossilized bones are extremely rare.  When alive, the bones were thin and partially filled with air making them extremely delicate by design.  Because of this, very seldom do the bones survive as fossils.  Isolated remains are found on rare occasion but associated and especially articulated discoveries such as this fossil, are an extreme scarcity and important scientifically.  Unlike many other pterosaur fossils from Brazil and especially from China, this specimen is 100% ORIGINAL AS FOUND with NO BONES COMPOSITED from other, multiple animals to make this fossil.  This is a complete arm (wing) less the humerus of a possibly unnamed species.  Based on the measurements, it is estimated that the wingspan of this pterosaur was 1.6 to 1.7 meters across.  There are several new species being studied at the time of this listing so it is possible it belongs to a specimen not yet published or it is from a pterosaur not yet known as all of the reference papers and material we could find are of pterosaurs larger than this example. 

Pterosaur fossils are found in the Santana Formation in both the concretions of the Romualdo deposits and the laminated limestones of the Crato deposits.  The majority of the pterosaur fossils found and studied are from the Romualdo concretions with very little specimens found in the Crato limestones.  This specimen is one of the Crato discoveries and as such, further adds to the immense rarity of this piece.  All bones and claws in this specimen are 100% NATURAL WITH NO REPAIR AND NO RESTORATION OR FABRICATION.  The slab has NO BREAKS or any repair so the bones are untouched with only manual surface preparation.  Even the delicate metacarpals and still articulated claws are in place!  Coming up from deeper in the rock, the remaining claws and metacarpals can be seen.  We have observed several heavily reconstructed and faked Chinese pterosaur fossils on the market in the recent years but NEVER a legal specimen from Brazil's Santana Formation, until now.  In his publication, AMNH curator Maisey classifies pterosaur fossils from the Santana Formation not as RARE but as EXOTIC to place emphasis on their extreme scarcity.  This fossil would make for a perfect candidate for purchase and subsequent museum donation.

NOTE:  THIS IS A COMPLETE AND TRUE, FULLY PRESENT POSITIVE SIDE SLAB FOSSIL WITH ALL THE ACTUAL PTEROSAUR BONES IN MATRIX.  BE HIGHLY CAUTIOUS WHEN CONSIDERING ANY RARE FOSSILS IN MATRIX SLABS BECAUSE WE HAVE SEEN SOME UNSCRUPULOUS SELLERS SELLING ONLY THE NEGATIVE IMPRESSION SLAB AS THE WHOLE FOSSIL AND NOT DISCLOSING IT AS A NEGATIVE SLAB.  THE NEGATIVE SLABS ARE WORTH ONLY A SMALL FRACTION OF THE VALUE OF THE POSITIVE SIDE SLAB THAT CONTAINS THE ACTUAL FOSSIL LIKE THIS SPECIMEN.  MANY ORIGINAL FIELD COLLECTORS ACTUALLY THROW AWAY THE NEGATIVE SLABS AT THE DISCOVERY SITE.  THE NEGATIVE SLABS DO NOT CONTAIN THE TRUE ACTUAL FOSSIL BONES (OR ONLY A SMALL PORTION) - ONLY THE DETAILED IMPRESSIONS WITH PIGMENT!!  THEY LOOK SOMEWHAT SIMILAR SO BE CAREFUL.  ON THE NEGATIVE SLABS, YOU WON'T SEE THE THREE DIMENSIONAL OUTWARDLY PROTRUDING FOSSIL BONES IN THE MATRIX AS YOU SEE ABOVE IN THE CLOSE-UP PHOTOGRAPHS!

SPECIAL NOTE:

In John Maisey's book titled "Santana Fossils", he cites the prevalence of fake, composite and enhanced fossils from this formation that are on the market.  The local artisans at the sites produce a wide variety of artificially created fossils - some horribly obvious yet some, extremely convincing out of carefully matched composite pieces.  These composite examples are very convincing because they are made up of all real pieces but not necessarily of the same species!  Often, missing parts are carved or sculpted from a mixture of plaster, rock dust and epoxy and then painted to disguise the work.  A number of these handcrafted "fossils" have in the past, and continue to, make it into the mainstream fossil market.  Describing a variety of techniques and types of fakes, Maisey even shows photographs of some fakes for reference to illustrate the breadth, creativity and skill of some of these workers.  He also addresses the prevalence of fake insect and other rare fossils within the text.  With all Brazilian fossils, collectors should approach prospective purchases with caution for not only the legality of the specimen but also, for accurate disclosure by a qualified and experienced preparator of any artificial enhancement to the specimen.  PALEO DIRECT guarantees every Santana Formation specimen we offer to be AUTHENTIC and "as described" with a written unlimited lifetime guarantee / certificate of its authenticity and data sheet.
 
Rarely do fossils possess the preservation of those found in Brazil's Santana Formation located on the Araripe Plateau.  The magnificent fossils include a vast selection of fish, insects and plants along with rare occurrences of the remains of pterosaurs, dinosaurs, frogs, turtles, crocodiles and miscellaneous marine invertebrates.  Santana fossils are predominantly made up of two kinds of fossils which are classified as two different strata - the earlier Crato members which are found in shales and thin limestone layers and the later Romualdo members which are found in round limestone concretions.  The lower or older Crato member strata occur as fossils in laminated limestones that were deposited on an undisturbed lakebed.  These types include small fishes and a diverse fauna of insects and other animals suggesting a dry open terrestrial environment.  A frog has been found in the Crato deposits along with the impression of a feather and pterosaur remains.  Romualdo member fossils include a wide variety of fish, plants and rare occurrences of reptiles such as crocodiles, turtles, dinosaurs and pterosaurs.  Most impressive are the fact that these concretionary fossils are preserved in a full three dimensional perspective and when prepared with the utmost care and skill, reveal features and anatomy that are akin to the animal being alive. 
 
The exact dating of these two members remains enigmatic although the Crato members are known to pre-date the Romualdo members.  It is possible that both are within the same time zone of the Lower Cretaceous.  Despite the long period of time these fossils have been known, much work remains in the study and determination of dating and the full breadth of the flora and fauna from the Santana Formation of Brazil. 

The Pterosaur was a flying reptile (commonly referred to as Pterodactyl "wing finger") of the order Pterosauria.  They existed from the late Triassic to the Cretaceous Periods (228 - 65 million years ago) with the earlier Triassic species having long, fully toothed jaws and long tails.  The later forms had a stump for a tail, no teeth and a jaw more like a beak than the elongated jaw of the earlier species. 

At least 60 genera of pterosaurs have been found with sizes ranging from a sparrow to monsters with wingspans in excess of 40 feet!  The wings were thin membranes of skin, similar to the wings of bats, and extended along the sides of the body.  

They were attached to the extraordinarily long fourth finger of each arm.  The bones were hollow and had openings at each end.    Unlike typical reptiles, pterosaurs had a breastbone that was developed for the attachment of flight muscles and a brain that was more developed than comparable dinosaurs of similar sizes.  There is no fossil evidence of feathers.  Most researchers now believe that pterosaurs were adapted for active flight, not just gliding as was earlier believed.

TRULY 100% ORIGINAL AND AUTHENTIC AS FOUND PTEROSAUR FOSSIL - AMAZING DETAIL AND PRESERVATION WITH METACARPALS & CLAWS

COLLECTING AND EXPORT FROM BRAZIL HAS BEEN CLOSED AND BANNED FOR OVER A HALF A CENTURY - VERY OLD COLLECTION SPECIMEN

Original limestone slab is 15.25" x 9.5" overall, wing (without humerus) is approximately  26" long

if assembled and straightened  (estimated 1.6-1.7 meter wingspan)

$12500     PT001     INCLUDES STAND     Actual Item - One Only

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12500