Beautiful Red Iridescent Canadian Ammonite (Ammolite), 13"
This Placenticeras costatum specimen is a stunning example of the famous iridescent ammonites from Canada - its shell is preserved with gorgeous ammolite.
Ammolite is a rare, opal-like gemstone found only in Alberta's Upper Cretaceous Bearpaw formation, just east of the Rocky Mountains. This piece displays bright colours on both sides, predominantly red with hints fo orange, gold and green. Complete specimens, especially with this variety of colours and high lustre, are quite rare.
- Government Registration number: 35(972)
- Size: 13" x 10" x 2.5" / 33 cm x 25.5 cm x 6 cm
- Deposit: Bearpaw Formation
- Location: Southern Alberta, Canada
- Age: Late Cretaceous (71 million years old)
- Certificate of authenticity included
- Can be shipped internationally
- Stand not included
We are also happy to arrange a showroom visit - more specimens are available for viewing in Alberta, Canada.
Contact Us for more information.
Ammonites belong to the Mollusca Phylum in a Class known as Cephalopods – “head-footed” creatures such as octopus and squid. They swam in ancient oceans from 400 million years ago, to their extinction, along with the dinosaurs, 65 million years ago.
Ammonites were free floating invertebrates that were attacked by plesiosaurs and mosasaurs, two groups of gigantic marine reptiles. One way that ammonites could avoid an attack was to quickly change their buoyancy levels, zig zagging and sinking rapidly.
These incredible prehistoric animals ranged in size from tiny species only a few centimetres in diameter to the monstrous Cretaceous ammonite, Parapuzosia seppenradensis, which grew to about 3 meters and would probably weigh close to 1500 kilograms!