2.4" Eryon Crustacean - Solnhofen Limestone

This is a spectacularly preserved 2.4" long, specimen of Eryon arctiformis an extinct type of decapod crustacean from the Solnhofen Limestone of Germany. Eryon was thought to have fed on particulate matter on the sea floor, probably having a similar lifestyle to a lobster.

They don't get any better than this. It's laid out prone and because it was mostly buried under the rock when found the preservation is nearly perfect. It's nicely centered on a 7.5x5.4" slab of limestone. There is one repaired crack running vertically through the rock.

The Solnhofen limestones is a famous Lagerstätte in Germany that offer amazing preservation of Upper Jurassic fossils. It is where on of the most famous fossils of all time, Archaeopteryx was found. The fine grained limestone makes excellent building materials which has let to heavy quarrying over the past two centuries which as a result has led to some amazing fossils being unearthed.

This area represented an archipelago at the edge of a sea. Due to high salt content, the lowest levels in the water column could not support much life and was devoid of oxygen. This lack of scavengers on the bottom of the sea led to amazing preservation of the fauna found there.