8.5" Polished Petrified Cycad (Cycadales) Fossil

Polished Petrified Cycad (Cycadales) Fossil #246328

This incredible specimen is a cycad (order Cycadales) fossil that comes out of the Morrison Formation. It's old collection material, so the specific location has been lost over the years. Petrified wood experts believe it to have been collected in either Utah or Colorado. One face has been cut flat and polished to a glossy finish, while the rest of the specimen is in its natural rough state.

Comes with an acrylic-metal display stand.

This fossil is Upper Jurassic in age, or approximately 150 million years old. The formation which it comes from is the same formation known for producing fossils of well known dinosaurs such as Allosaurus and Diplodocus. So this plant was living at the same time as the dinosaurs!

What Is Petrified Wood

Petrified wood is the name given to wood that has been turned into stone (fossilized) through the process of permineralization. In this process, all of the organic matter becomes replaced by minerals, while much of the original structure, such as tree rings, is retained. For this to happen, the wood needs to be buried in an environment low in oxygen to prevent decomposition and with flowing, mineral-laden water, so minerals may replace structures. The coloration is caused by various minerals that present in that water during fossilization. For example, red colors are due to iron compounds, greens due to copper, and so on.

SPECIES

Order Cycadales

AGE

Late Jurassic (~150 million years)