North America, Wyoming, Green River Formation, Eocene Period, ca. 53.5 to 48.5 million years ago. A sandstone matrix containing a fossilized leaf inlaid with a fish fossil from the same formation! The leaf is possibly a prehistoric species of maple leaf (Acer spp.), and the fish is a type of Knightia, a schooling fish similar to modern day herrings or sardines. This fish was extracted from the famous fossil-bearing "18-inch layer," where the sediment is highly laminated, so fossils can be excavated nearly whole, and inlaid with other fossils, such as this leaf. The stone is meticulously prepared with a wood panel backing as an amazing display piece. Size of matrix: 17.5" L x 1.5" W x 13" H (44.4 cm x 3.8 cm x 33 cm); fish: 5.75" L x 2" W x 13" H (14.6 cm x 5.1 cm x 33 cm); leaf: 10" L x 4.25" W (25.4 cm x 10.8 cm)

The sediment from the Green River Formation was deposited over a 5-million-year span, the layers of flora and fauna may not have fossilized at the same time - but make for interesting composites. The Eocene world was the warmest of the Cenozoic (our current era), with an average mean temperature around 86 F (30 C) (for comparison, the average mean temperature in the last seventy years is around 58 F (14 C). Although the map of the Earth's surface would have been very recognizable to us today, with most of the continents in place and India moving close to its current position, there were basically no ice caps and huge swaths of the landscape were covered with water, including vast inland seas. This impressive aquarium like arrangement creates a rare scene from a prehistoric environment that was drastically different than what the semi-arid Wyoming landscape of today!

Provenance: private Berthoud, Colorado, USA collection

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#177729

Professionally prepared, fish is inlaid into the surface. Stable hairline fissure across corner of stone matrix. Mounted on a wooden board backing and comes with a metal bracket for mounting.