Pyritized Pleuroceras Ammonite Cluster - Germany

This is a pyritized Pleuroceras ammonite fossil collected near Forcheim, Germany. It's Jurassic, Pliensbachian stage or approximately 185 million years old. There is a thin layer of pyrite present below the white, calcite/aragonite replaced shell.

Please note, that the ammonite has been brushed with a wire brush to remove the white shell and give it a brilliant, golden shine. Despite being pyritized their natural color when found is fairly dull.

Ammonites are extinct mollusks that resembled a squid with a shell. These cephalopods had eyes, tentacles, and spiral shells. They were one of the dominant life forms in the ocean during the Mesozoic era but went extinct along with the dinosaurs 65 million years ago.