33" Green River Fossil Fish "Mural" With Two Huge Diplomystus

Green River Fossil Fish Mural With Two Huge Diplomystus #189306

Due to the size and weight of this piece it will be shipped on a pallet or in a crate via freight. Our website cannot automatically calculate freight shipping costs, so these costs will be calculated and billed after purchase. Please contact us prior to purchase if you need a shipping quote.

This is a fascinating fossil fish "mural" from the Green River Formation of Wyoming. The entire piece measures 32.9 x 20.9" and features two huge Diplomystus dentatus fish that measure 17.1" and 16" long, along with a third, smaller Diplomystus that measures 6.9" long. These fossils were collected from the Lindgren Quarry near Kemmerer, Wyoming. The fish were collected from the "bottom cap layer" at the base of the 18 inch layer. This layer is not frequently collected because it is much harder to collect and prepare but produces stunning preservation.

The two large Diplomystus are situated in their natural positions that they were found within the rock. The smallest Diplomystus fish was found separately and has been inlaid into the rock to create an aesthetic display. This is the case with many of the large, multiple fish pieces you see from the Green River Formation. The entire piece has been backed with wood for stability and includes a wood wall hanger so that it can easily be hung on a wall. It weighs about 73 lbs and will ship in a wooden crate on a pallet.

About Fossil Lake

50 million years ago, in the Eocene epoch, these fish thrived in Fossil Lake, which was fed by the Uinta and Rocky Mountain highlands. The anoxic conditions at the bottom of Fossil Lake slowed bacterial decomposition, prevented scavengers from disturbing corpses, and, most interestingly, suffocated creatures that ventured into the oxygen-starved aquatic layer. The result is a miraculous exhibition of Eocene biota: a subtropical aquatic community within sycamore forests, teeming with creatures such as freshwater stingrays, dog-sized horses, menacing alligators, early flying bats, and one of the first primates.

A view of one of the commercial quarries where fossils from the Green River Formation are collected.