7.5" Septarian "Dragon Egg" Geode - Removable Section

This is a polished septarian geode collected from the Betsiboka Region of Madagascar. The hollow cavity is full of shimmering, black calcite crystals and the exterior has been shaped and polished into the shape of an egg with a glossy finish. A removable "puzzle piece" allows the interior, crystal filled cavity to be viewed.

There is some gap fill along the exterior of this specimen. Comes with the pictured display stand.

About Septarian

Septarian or septarian nodules are concretions containing angular cavities or cracks, called "septaria", filled with calcite and aragonite. A concretion is a hard, compact mass of rock that often forms around decaying organic matter. In the case of septarian nodules, the concretions formed around decaying sea life in a marine environment.

The exact mechanism for how the cracks form in the concretions is a mystery. One possible mechanism is the dehydration of the clay-rich core of a concretion, causing it to shrink and crack. The cracks could also be caused by gas expansion produced by the decaying organic matter within a concretion. Earthquakes have also been suggested as yet another mechanism.

The cracks in the concretions are then filled in with minerals such as calcite (yellow), aragonite (brown), and sometimes pyrite, causing very interesting patterns. They have often been described as looking like dragon's skin. They are frequently found as geodes with hollow, calcite crystal-filled cavities. More rarely, the fossils that originally started the formation of the concretion are still preserved in the septarian.
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DETAILS
SPECIES
Septarian with Black Calcite
LOCATION
Ambondromamy, Betsiboka Region, Madagascar
SIZE
7.5 x 5.5", weighs 10 lbs
CATEGORY
SUB CATEGORY
ITEM
#203822