A Large Fossil Palm Flower with Diplomystus Fish
Lot Closed
December 3, 07:37 PM GMT
Estimate
30,000 - 50,000 USD
Lot Details
Description
A Large Palm Flower with Diplomystus
Sabalites sp., Diplomystus
Early Eocene (approx. 50 million years ago)
Sandwich Layer, Green River Formation, Wyoming, United States
This natural fossil mural measures 6 feet by 3 feet (183 x 91 cm). 538 pounds (244 kg). This curving Sabalites palm specimen is accompanied by the small extinct fish, Diplomystus, inlaid on the top right.
50 million years ago, Wyoming's Green River Formation was comprised of 25,000 square miles (40,000 km) of interconnected subtropical lakes bursting with both flora and fauna. Today the area is known as the "Fossil Lake", the source of some of the most abundant and well-preserved freshwater fossils anywhere in the world.
The majority of these specimens are fauna, not flora, with palms being exceptionally scarce as a result of thin leaves that are highly susceptible to decomposition prior to fossilization. Because of this, palms boast some of the largest and most prized leaves in the geologic record, with the natural Sabalites mural offered here serving as a beautiful example.