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RECORD
SIZE
MUSEUM GRADE RHACOLEPIS FISH IN THREE DIMENSIONAL FORM
Santana Formation - Ceara, Brazil
LOWER CRETACEOUS
PERIOD: 110 million years ago
Of all the richest
fossil-bearing deposits ever known, Brazil's Santana Formation is ranked
among the world's greatest. Santana fossils are known for not only
their extreme diversity but more importantly, for the nature of their
breath-taking preservation - considered by scientists to include the
finest examples of fossils in existence. The formation provides an
amazing window into the paleobiota of a prehistoric world from the Lower
Cretaceous, 110 million years ago. The Santana fossils of Brazil were
first recorded in the year 1828 by two natural historians, Dr. J. B. von
Spix and Dr. C. F. P. von Martius, commissioned by the king of Bavaria.
To this day, they are still being studied with many new discoveries
coming to light.
Our recent purchase of a 70+ year old private European collection of
vertebrate Santana fossils has provided us with numerous spectacular
quality specimens that go well beyond the quality and completeness of
anything we have seen in either private hands or in museum collections.
While these specimens were originally collected in the 1930's before the
ban enacted in 1942, they had remained in their raw state "as collected"
up until only recently, whereby they were prepared utilizing the most
modern laboratory techniques and equipment hence their remarkable state
of display. In comparison, the definitive illustrated work on these
fossils, written by curator John G. Maisey titled "Santana Fossils", is
illustrated with numerous prized specimens owned by the American Museum
of Natural History (AMNH) in New York. The specimens we acquired and
offer here, far exceed the quality of the finest specimens shown from
the American Museum in this publication. The method of preparation for
the concretionary specimens we obtained utilized procedures that produce
whole, fully exposed fossils without splitting the concretions open and
destroying the specimen as most others have done. The collection we
acquired encompasses a variety of extremely rare vertebrates
including fish and reptiles such as pterosaurs, in stunning degrees of
preservation that rivals or even surpasses the finest
acid-prepared examples housed in the American Museum of Natural History.
With these specimens
we are offering, there is no comparison to the "butchered" concretionary
Brazilian fossils that are crudely split with chisels to reveal the
fossil inside. Our collection has not been subjected to such
treatment and are whole, fully three dimensionally examples prepared
with the most advanced paleontological lab techniques and equipment.
This is an EXTREMELY RARE example of a common extinct fish species called
Rhacolepis. It is
NEARLY DOUBLE THE AVERAGE
LENGTH of
what is typically encountered in this species. It is the largest
example we have ever seen in both, specimens on the market and specimens
that have been scientifically published or in museum collections.
Furthermore, the three dimensional quality is unlike anything you will
ever see in this species, as well. While Rhacolepis is an abundant type found
in the concretionary deposits of the Santana Formation, ironically,
never can you find quality examples on the market. This type is
also often subjected to heavy fabrication, faking and composite assembly
of unrelated fish fossils to make a seemingly single complete specimen.
Every example we have seen outside of museum collections look
embarrassingly horrible, barely recognizable as a fish and in most
cases, more akin to a torpedo-shaped coprolite. Furthermore, most
Rhacolepis fossils are found with little to no matrix surrounding
the fish body as well as lacking the preservation of the tail. If
you want THE FINEST and RECORD-SIZE LARGEST example of this common species, it becomes
paradoxically rare to locate! With this specimen, comes a
fantastic and uncommon opportunity to acquire this species fish in a
better quality than what the largest museums display. While the
price is substantially higher than all other specimens we have seen, it
certainly surpasses
the completeness and state of preservation of EVERY specimen we have
seen including those shown in Maisey's publication displaying specimens
from the American Museum of Natural History!
This Rhacolepis is
the specimen all others should be judged by and a more complete and
well-preserved textbook example could not be had. The nodule this
fish was found in is abnormally large and thick thereby making for a
best display example with a perimeter of original matrix. Nodule
is unbroken but head has single thin fracture repair. Head
protrudes off the matrix to an extreme and creates an illusion the fish
is lifting its head up off the concretion! Superb natural color
and scale detail as seen above with stunning preservation in the head
which is never seen to this degree.
100% COMPLETE AND ORIGINAL
with NO RESTORATION.
Dinosaurs ruled the earth and pterosaurs ruled the skies when this fish
swam amidst the depths of a Cretaceous sea.
SPECIAL NOTE:
In John Maisey's book
titled "Santana Fossils", he cites the prevalence of fake, composite and
enhanced fossils from this formation that are on the market. The
local artisans at the sites produce a wide variety of artificially
created fossils - some horribly obvious yet some, extremely convincing
out of carefully matched composite pieces. These composite
examples are very convincing because they are made up of all real pieces
but not necessarily of the same species! Often, missing parts are
carved or sculpted from a mixture of plaster, rock dust and epoxy and
then painted to disguise the work. A number of these handcrafted
"fossils" have in the past, and continue to, make it into the mainstream
fossil market. Describing a variety of techniques and types of
fakes, Maisey even shows photographs of some fakes for reference to
illustrate the breadth, creativity and skill of some of these workers.
He also addresses the prevalence of fake insect and other rare fossils
within the text. With all Brazilian fossils,
collectors should approach prospective purchases with caution for not
only the legality of the specimen but also, for accurate disclosure by a
qualified and experienced preparator of any artificial enhancement to
the specimen.
PALEO DIRECT guarantees every Santana Formation specimen we offer to be
AUTHENTIC and "as described" with a written unlimited lifetime guarantee
/ certificate of its authenticity and data sheet.
Rarely do fossils possess the preservation of those found in Brazil's
Santana Formation located on the Araripe Plateau. The magnificent
fossils include a vast selection of fish, insects and plants along with
rare occurrences of the remains of pterosaurs, dinosaurs, frogs,
turtles, crocodiles and miscellaneous marine invertebrates. Santana
fossils are predominantly made up of two kinds of fossils which are
classified as two different strata - the earlier Crato members which are
found in shales and thin limestone layers and the later Romualdo members
which are found in round limestone concretions. The lower or older
Crato member strata occur as fossils in laminated limestones that were
deposited on an undisturbed lakebed. These types include small fishes
and a diverse fauna of insects and other animals suggesting a dry
open terrestrial environment. A frog has been found in the Crato
deposits along with the impression of a feather and pterosaur remains.
Romualdo member fossils include a wide variety of fish, plants and rare
occurrences of reptiles such as crocodiles, turtles, dinosaurs and
pterosaurs. Most impressive are the fact that these concretionary
fossils are preserved in a full three dimensional perspective and when
prepared with the utmost care and skill, reveal features and anatomy
that are akin to the animal being alive.
The exact dating of these two members remains enigmatic although the
Crato members are known to pre-date the Romualdo members. It is
possible that both are within the same time zone of the Lower
Cretaceous. Despite the long period of time these fossils have been
known, much work remains in the study and determination of dating and
the full breadth of the flora and fauna from the Santana Formation of
Brazil.
LARGEST AND FINEST 3D
PRESERVATION OF THIS SPECIES WE HAVE EVER HEARD OF IN A COMPLETE
AUTHENTIC SPECIMEN!!!
Fish alone is 15" in length x 4.5" high
$3495
FBR-004 INCLUDES STAND
Actual
Item - One Only |
