History of Science & Technology, Including the World of Richard Feynman, and Natural History
History of Science & Technology, Including the World of Richard Feynman, and Natural History
A Colony of Fossilized Sea Lilies
Silurian Period (approx. 430 million years ago), Erfoud, Morocco
No reserve
Lot Closed
December 13, 07:36 PM GMT
Estimate
2,500 - 3,500 USD
Lot Details
Description
A Colony of Fossilized Sea Lilies
Scyphocrinus elegans
Silurian Period (approx. 430 million years ago)
Erfoud, Morocco
19½ x 31 x 1½ inches (49.5 x 78.7 x 3.8). 36 pounds (16.3 kg).
Beautifully preserved specimen, with gray lilies elegantly arranged on a rose-bronze colored matrix.
Sea lilies, relatives of sea urchins and starfish, appeared more than 500 million years ago. Despite their deceptively simple common name, crinoids were in fact complex and unusual creatures attached to the bottom of the seas. The present specimen is composed of the stalked crinoids with long rods attached to tentacled calyxes that once filtered food particles from the currents flowing past them. This elegant bouquet of sea lilies provides a beguiling snapshot of the underwater world of the Paleozoic Era.