Orthoceras - Fossilised animal





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Orthoceras specimen from Morocco dating to the Ordovician period (485.4–443.8 million years ago), polished and in natural condition, with original/official authenticity.
Description from the seller
Beautiful plate with several specimens of Orthoceras from Morocco. These marine animals were among the first living forms to inhabit the planet. Discovery in the northwestern Sahara.
Orthoceras are extinct cephalopod mollusks, belonging to a group now extinct. These marine creatures lived in the oceans hundreds of millions of years ago, mainly during the Ordovician and Silurian periods. Their name, which in Greek means "straight horn", refers to the distinctive shape of their conical, elongated shell. This shell was divided into chambers, separated by septa, and traversed by a siphon.
The Orthoceras shell is probably their most distinctive feature. It was made of aragonite, a mineral that also forms the shells of many modern mollusks. Over time, and under the influence of geological processes such as sedimentation and mineralization, these shells fossilized, giving rise to the specimens we admire today.
The Orthoceras fossils are precious witnesses of marine life from a bygone era. Their study allows scientists to reconstruct ancient ecosystems, understand the evolution of species, and better comprehend the major changes that have marked Earth's history.
Beautiful plate with several specimens of Orthoceras from Morocco. These marine animals were among the first living forms to inhabit the planet. Discovery in the northwestern Sahara.
Orthoceras are extinct cephalopod mollusks, belonging to a group now extinct. These marine creatures lived in the oceans hundreds of millions of years ago, mainly during the Ordovician and Silurian periods. Their name, which in Greek means "straight horn", refers to the distinctive shape of their conical, elongated shell. This shell was divided into chambers, separated by septa, and traversed by a siphon.
The Orthoceras shell is probably their most distinctive feature. It was made of aragonite, a mineral that also forms the shells of many modern mollusks. Over time, and under the influence of geological processes such as sedimentation and mineralization, these shells fossilized, giving rise to the specimens we admire today.
The Orthoceras fossils are precious witnesses of marine life from a bygone era. Their study allows scientists to reconstruct ancient ecosystems, understand the evolution of species, and better comprehend the major changes that have marked Earth's history.

