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PARADOXIDES NATURAL DOUBLE TRILOBITE BED
Anti-Atlas Region, Morocco
CAMBRIAN
PERIOD: 543 - 510 million years ago
The
giant Paradoxides trilobite is the largest Cambrian trilobite that
is found in sedimentary rock beds from this period. They must made
quite an intimidating appearance based on their size and design as they
roamed the bottom of the ocean floor over a half a billion years ago. These
kind of trilobite fossils often fracture when rock is split to locate
them. This unavoidable damaging method often leaves missing pieces
and highly fragmented specimens so repair and restoration is usually the
norm.
Because of its impressive size and appearance,
The Paradoxides trilobite is very popular with collectors but the great
majority of examples are either faked or heavily restored such that
there is less than 20% of the real creature present. This specimen
is a true rarity as it is
a NATURAL DOUBLE, displaying
two Paradoxides trilobites, side by side, partially overlapping and at different
layers. The larger specimen below is with
100%
GENUINE and rivals
the finest type in any museum or private collection. The smaller
one is above this larger trilobite and rock has been removed to show
both and a portion left to show the divide at different levels in the
slab. There is some restoration to the cephalon and middle of the
genal spine of the smaller creature but the tip of the genal spine is
completely authentic and this restoration does not detract it as
considerable evidence in the rock is present to provide proof of the
genuineness of the animal.
THIS
SPECIMEN IS MUCH BETTER THAN APPEARS IN THE PHOTOS! This
is the only side by side double we acquired from a find years ago.
It is not
only a fantastic and very large display fossil but is very educational
and of the highest grade with much of the limestone around the animals un-chiseled and left to show VERY RARE NATURAL IMPRESSIONS of the
pygidium and pleural spines even down to their most extreme tips.
All this is visible in the rock and shown in the last close-up images
above. Many of these features are almost never present regardless
of how good a Paradoxides fossil is. This is a very well-suited
example for a public display of an educational facility or museum along
with a first rate private collection. Examples like this are VERY
seldom available for sale. The last image
and fourth to the last is of
the region where the two trilobites meet. This solid area of
limestone is obvious proof that these are not two artificially joined
trilobites as nearly every multiple specimen sold usually is. The close-up images of the detail of both specimens
shows the beautiful and seldom seen state of preservation that dominates
the fossil. A thin clear preservative has been applied over each
creature to protect there rare natural features.
Trilobites
are hard-shelled, segmented creatures
that lived hundreds of millions of years ago in the Earth's ancient seas.
They are considered to be one of our planet's earliest complex
life-forms and are one of the key
signature creatures of the Paleozoic Era. Trilobites went extinct before dinosaurs even
existed.
Next
to dinosaur fossils, trilobites command a dedicated and passionate
following amongst both scientists and fossil collectors, alike. In
a relatively short time-frame (scientifically speaking, of course), we
have the emergence and subsequent extinction of these fascinating
creatures. Still most baffling is the incredible diversity of
sizes and features that made up the trilobite group. Many bizarre
species co-existed with highly specialized body parts that defy the
theories of evolution in their "sudden" emergence and
diversity during the Early Cambrian Period in what is known as the
'Cambrian Explosion'.
Trilobites
were among the world's first arthropods, a phylum of hard-shelled
creatures with multiple body segments and jointed legs (although the
legs, antennae and other finer structures of trilobites only very rarely
are preserved). They constitute an extinct class of arthropods,
Trilobita, that is comprised of over 15,000 known species.
It has been
reported that every year, four to five new species are discovered in the
Atlas and Anti-Atlas Mountain regions in Morocco, alone! This
desolate northern fringe of the Sahara Desert was once covered by a
prehistoric ocean and its fossil deposits can be considered the world's
richest and most diverse source of these ancient sea creatures.
Trilobites are the single most diverse
group of extinct organisms that ever existed, period! The
smallest known trilobite is just three millimeters long, while
the largest type grew to a length of 70 centimeters (over two feet
long!). The most
common fossil of trilobites is the mineralized dorsal exoskeleton of the
creature. This is found in partial form from molting (shedding the
shell as it grows) or in complete form when the animal was buried and
died intact. The soft parts of the underside are rarely
preserved. The name 'TRILOBITE' means 'three lobed" and is
derived from the fact these animals had bodies featuring three longitudinal
lobes, not lateral (head, body, tail) as is often thought. The
lateral division of three parts is shared by many arthropods, not just
trilobites.
Considerable
study has been done on trilobites as a whole organism. Even more
fascinating though, is the research done on a microscopic level with
regards to trilobite morphology. Radiographs have
captured incredible detail of complete and fully articulated antennae
and underparts like legs and gills, preserved in the host rock of some
fossilized specimens. Perhaps the most impressive and classic
feature of trilobites that comes to mind is the eyes. Microscopic
studies of trilobite eye structures have also revealed marvelous
adaptation and very high degrees of specialization in
vision.
It seems
that the more we learn about trilobites, the unfolding of their mystery
is stranger than fiction. Certainly we gain a greater appreciation
with each new discovery of these strange and highly advanced but now
extinct 'butterflies of the ancient seas'.
EXCEEDINGLY
RARE IN THIS FORM AND A NATURAL DOUBLE - MUSEUM GRADE SPECIMEN FOR THE
FINEST COLLECTIONS!
18.25"
x 18.25" with original matrix, animals 14" and 11.25" in length
$1895
TR128
INCLUDES STAND Actual
Item - One Only
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