Goldberg Coins and Collectibles

Sale 66

The Manuscript, Space, Stamp & Collectibles Auction

Natural History

Lot	Photo	Description	Realized
Lot 830		Ammonite Sculpture, Ammonites were cephalopods that looked liked a squid in a spiral shaped shell. This esthetic 11 x 9 inch sculpture features two 100 million year old caramel colored ammonites, Phylloceras from Sidi Yahya Said, Morocco positioned atop a 8 x 4 inch long brown sandstone base which has a scroll-like pattern. The largest Phylloceras ammonite is 7.5 x 6.25 inches in diameter and the smaller matching ammonite is 4.5 x 3.5 inches. Both ammonites vary slightly in color with darker small crystals within the chambers like the inside of a geode. The walls of some of the chambers (called Septa) have dissolved, leaving the squiggly pattern of the sutures which strengthened the ammonites shell when it was alive. The back side of each ammonite is solid and clearly shows the colorful golden brown suture lines. Photos do not do justice to this exquisitely colorful and ornate ammonite sculpture, which has both natural and esthetic beauty. Add $35 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $1,200 - 1,500 View details and enlarged photo	Realized $1,050
Lot 831		Aquatic 150 Million Year Old Reptile, Sinohydrosaurus lingyuanensisgen was a strange looking aquatic reptile with a very long neck that lived 150 million years ago in fresh water lakes in Liaoning Province, China. Sinohydrosaurus translates to Chinese water dragon. This juvenile specimen is over 4.5 inches long and virtually complete (missing only a few digits in the feet) with all four legs, tiny rib bones and even smaller gastralia rib bones and most importantly an excellently detailed skull. This superbly detailed reptile is excellently preserved in the same position that it was buried in 150 million years ago on a 5 x 4 inch matrix of soft tuffaceous volcanic rock The tail is complete and curled in a defensive position which tells us that Sinohydrosaurus was able to move its tail in any direction and that the tail was not just stiff. Sinohydrosaurus may be an ancient relative of the fierce Komodo Dragon and complete museum quality specimens such as this one are becoming very difficult to locate. Housed in a 8 x 6 inch Riker mount. Add $15 for domestic shipping: $15. Estimated Value $400 - 500 View details and enlarged photo	Realized $360
Lot 832		Carcharodon Megalodon Shark's Tooth, Even though Carcharodon megalodon was the largest shark that ever lived, growing to more than 50 feet in length, most of the teeth found are only 3-4 inches in length. Teeth over 5 inches in length are in great demand and the magic number is a full 6 inches, which is the size that every collector aspires to own. This immense 6.25 inch, 10-15 million year old Carcharodon tooth was found in the muddy river waters of Beaufort County, South Carolina. Estimating the length of a shark at about 10 feet in length to every one inch of tooth, this behemoth would be over 60 feet long. This huge tooth has fairly complete enamel on both the front and back except for some minor natural erosion on the front. The edge is smooth without any serrations. The color of the enamel is mixture of greens and browns that contrast nicely with the black root. It also comes with a custom 7 x 4.5 inch black wooden display stand. Add $20 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $800 - 1,000 View details and enlarged photo	Realized $870
Lot 833		Carcharodontosaurus Dinosaur Tooth, Large 2.75 inch long (around the curve) by 1.50 inch wide complete dinosaur tooth of Carcharodontosaurus saharicus, the T-Rex of Africa. Even though Carcharodontosaurus was larger that a T-Rex, most of the teeth found are only 1.5 to 2.5 inches long. This complete reddish-brown shed tooth has very good enamel with only minor enamel chipping which almost always occurs. A lot of the knife-like serrations are present on both edges of the tooth with only minor breaks. This large impressive tooth was found in the Sahara desert of Morocco and Carcharodontosaurus was older than a T-Rex at 70-80 million years old and is an excellent value for a huge carnivorous dinosaur tooth as a T-Rex tooth this size would cost more than $3,000. Housed in a 6 x 5 inch Riker mount. Add $15 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $450 - 600 View details and enlarged photo	Realized $390
Lot 834		Complete Mammoth Tusk, Complete tusks from a wooly mammoth Mammuthis primigenius are rare. This large complete 38 inch long 3 inch diameter tusk is from a juvenile Mammoth, most probably a male because of its length and small diameter. It has been lightly polished revealing mostly chocolate brown colored ivory. These brown colors resulted from the original white ivory being mineralized over thousands of years with minerals such as vivianite and iron phosphate. This museum quality tusk was found in the Taymyr Peninsula of Siberia and is between 30,000 and 100,000 years old. Most recovered Mammoth ivory is just broken pieces unlike this over 3 foot long curved exceptional quality tusk. The only ivory that can be legally sold is fossil ivory. Comes with a display stand. Add $75 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $3,000 - 4,000 View details and enlarged photo	Realized $2,880
Lot 835		Complete Psittacosaurus Dinosaur, Psittacosaurus is a very important dinosaur that lived between 120-130 million years ago in Liaoning Province, Central Asia. Psittacosaurus is important as being the oldest ancestor of the famous horned dinosaurs such as Triceratops. Psittacosaurus did not have horns but did possess a horned beak and bony Jugals (back of the upper jaw) which are characteristic of only ceroptopsian (horned) dinosaurs. Psittacosaurus is the most studied of all dinosaurs because it is known from all stages from hatchling to adult. With eggs about 3 inches long, the hatchlings were about 6 inches long. Even though Psittacosaur nests contained no more than 24 eggs, an adult Psittacosaur over 4 feet long was found fossilized with more than 65 juvenile Psittacosaurs none larger than 19 inches long suggesting that baby Psittacosaurs were kept in their nesting area as they grew from 6inches to as much as 19 inches in length and were protected and probably fed by adult Psittacosaurs. This 12 inch long baby Psittacosaur is the smallest mounted dinosaur ever offered at auction and consists of at least 85% real bone missing only the small delicate neural spines along the back and tail. The great preservation of the small delicate bones occurred because this dinosaur was instantly buried under volcanic ash over 120 million years ago, a sort of dinosaurean Pompei The all important 3-D skull is 1.8 inches long with no distortion and all of the matrix completely removed from inside the skull and with some real teeth on both the upper and lower jaws. This small complete dinosaur has been repositioned in a natural looking display of the bones atop a 15 x 9 inch faux rock and would make an excellent desk or even wall display. Add $30 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $6,000 - 8,000 View details and enlarged photos	Realized $4,320
Lot 836		Dinosaur Egg Museum Quality, This large complete unhatched Duckbill dinosaur egg is 70-80 million years old 5.75 x 4.5 inches and of museum quality with over 95 percent of its original shell intact. The egg is completely original and the color varies from white covered calcite to brown where the calcite is very thin and has just a few spots on the top of the egg where the reddish brown matrix shows through. We do not know to what Duckbill species this egg belongs as no embryonic bones have every been found in the Duckbill dinosaur eggs, but being the largest Duckbill egg at a gigantic 7 inches in length (most eggs being 5-5.5 inches long) it might belong to the huge Duckbill dinosaur Shantungosaurus which reached more than 50 feet in length and has been found in the same area in the Henan Province of China. This museum quality dino egg makes an excellent display, having much more original egg shell than normally found and rests on a small section of its reddish brown limestone matrix. Dinosaur eggs are becoming hard to locate and rising sharply in value. Add $20 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $700 - 900 View details and enlarged photo	Realized $810
Lot 837		Dragonfly From Solnhofe, Solnhofe, Germany is well known for having the first bird found in the fossil record, Archaeopterix, but one of its other famous and popular fossils is the dragonfly. These 150 million year old dragonflies are beautifully preserved in the fine grain lithographic limestone matrix. This rare species Protolindenia wittei is one of the largest and most dramatic. Perfectly positioned on a 7 x 7 inch limestone matrix, this huge dragonfly has a 3.4 inch long body and a wingspan of 4.9 inches long. This is a complete dragonfly with a well defined head and amazing wing detail where even the most delicate wing membranes are preserved to make this dragonfly one of the finest to be found from the famous lithographic limestone quarry of Solnhofen. Add $15 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $1,100 - 1,400 View details and enlarged photo	Unsold
Lot 838		Four Juvenile T-Rex Teeth, These four complete juvenile T-Rex tooth 2 inches, 1.5 inches, 1.2 inches and .8 inch long and have excellent brown enamel with some minor enamel cracking, full tips except for some natural wear on two of the teeth and even some serrations. All T-Rex teeth are shed teeth except the very few that are found with the dozen or so partial skeletons that have been found. These teeth were found in an ancient river or lake bed on a private ranch in the 65-67 million year old Hell Creek Formation of Powder River County, Montana. All four of these teeth have squared off bases at the bottom of the teeth which is definitive for T-Rex teeth. There is still some debate as to whether the smaller more slender teeth of the Juvenile T-Rex belong to T-Rex or are adult teeth of the smaller species Nano tyrannus. This is a difficult question to answer because they are found in the same age rock formation. Add $20 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $1,200 - 1,500 View details and enlarged photo	Unsold
Lot 839		Gigantic Foot Long Trilobite, Acadoparadoxites was one of the largest and very earliest trilobite (over 500 million years old) that ever lived. This gigantic trilobite was one of the largest predators of the mid Cambrian warm seas of Morocco. Found in the Atlas Mountain range of Morocco, this 12 x 11.5 inch trilobite has an attractive rust orange color, limonite (an iron oxide) which nicely contrasts the creamy 17 x 16 inch matrix. This trilobite is virtually complete with only minor restoration to the bottom of one side of one spine of the Cephalon and there is just a little separation between the Cephalon (head) and Pygiduim (body). With most trilobites being only an inch or so in length, finding a museum quality specimen of such a giant trilobite is a very rare occurrence. Add $25 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $300 - 400 View details and enlarged photo	Realized $240
Lot 840		Huge 17 Inch Fish, Some of the best preserved fish in the fossil record are found in the 50-52 million year old Green River Wyoming fossil fresh water lake beds. The vast majority of the fish found are small measuring only 2-4 inches long. This museum quality lot is the exception with a huge 17 inch long (close to the maximum size) Diplomystus which was an extinct member of the herring family. The huge fish is complete with outstanding skin, fins and skull with sharp little teeth in its distinctive upturned mouth which enabled it to feed on small fish and creatures near the surface of the lake. The upper jaw is slightly disarticulated which makes it look even more fearsome and the ends of some of the tiny fine ventral spines have been restored The dark brown fish is nicely contrasted on the cream colored 26 x 18 inch sandstone matrix and has been backed with wood for stability. Add $45 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $800 - 1,000 View details and enlarged photo	Realized $720
Lot 841		Large Ammonite Cut Pair, Ammonites were early mollusks that somewhat resembled an octopus or squid living within a protective shell and are the closest relative to the chambered nautilus which still exists today. This specimen contains both halves of a large 6.5 inch in diameter 110 million year old ammonite, Cleoniceras from the large island of Madagascar. This ammonite has been cut in half and polished to reveal the detail and beauty of the inner chambers. Ammonites started growing in the small center and added chambers spiraling outward as they grew. The living animal lived only in the last large chamber and the inner chambers were airtight and could be filled with water or air by the living ammonite using its tube-like Siphuncle to move up or down in the water. The beautiful large 6.5 inch ammonite has inner chambers filled with root beer colored and light yellow colored calcite and cream or gold colored sphintures. Both halves are spectacularly displayed on a 4.5 x 5 inch black metal stand. Add $15 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $400 - 500 View details and enlarged photos	Unsold
Lot 842		Largest Oviraptor Egg, This original unhatched Oviraptor egg is 70-80 million years old from the Djadokhta formation of Ukhaa Tolgod of Mongolia. This egg was found in the Gobi desert and is the largest ever found at 8.5 inches long and 3.3 inches wide. It belongs to the largest of the two Oviraptor species called Citipati to distinguish this difference from the other smaller species. Citipati Oviraptorids were made famous by the nest of eggs with the mother Citipati sitting on top of the eggs in a brooding position. This famous specimen is displayed in the New York Museum of Natural History and was discovered in 1995. It was revolutionary to discover a dinosaur sitting on top of its eggs like a bird and only later was it discovered that Oviraptors such as Citipati also had feathers like a bird. Citipati eggs are ratite in texture and have a very thin shell which is why they are rarely found complete. This premium quality egg is fully inflated and has been fully prepared with sharp textured detail on the shell with over 75% original shell on the top of the egg and 40% original shell on the bottom side. Rarely are Oviraptor eggs found that are over 6.5 inches long and unhatched eggs such as this one often have disarticulated embryonic bones inside the egg, even though no bones are visible in this egg. Add $20 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $800 - 1,000 View details and enlarged photo	Realized $630
Lot 843		Merycoidon Mammal Skull With Leg and Hoof Bones, Merycoidon was a strange 30 million year old mammal from the extinct oreodont mammal group that has no modern relative and had some features of a pig and some features of a deer. This original 8 inch long skull is nearly complete except for the top of the skull which was shattered with pieces of bone scattered in the original matrix. Most of the teeth are present on both sides both top and bottom with the enamel being a lovely brown color and one .8 inch long sharp pig-like incisor present on the upper skull. In addition at the back of the skull there is a 4.5 inch long metatarsal bone and two phalanges ending with four small light colored hooves. This completely original fossil with no restoration was found on privately owned land in the White River Badlands formation of South Dakota. A Lucite display stand is also included. Add $25 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $600 - 900 View details and enlarged photo	Realized $600
Lot 844		Meteorite Gebel Kamil Ataxite, Ataxites are a rare type of Iron-Nickel meteorite that do not exibit Widmanstatten patterns when they are etched because of their high nickel content. Their interiors do have the crystals of schreibersite and troilite enveloped in kamacite that identify them as iron-nickel meteorites. The Gebel Kamil Ataxite with 19.8% nickel content was found February 19,2009 in the East Uweinat Desert of Egypt. A total of about 1600 Kg of meteorites were found consisting of thousands of pieces of shrapnel type meteorites illustrating the tremendous destructive explosion of impact. Half of this fall was taken to the Egyptian museum. It is not known when this meteorite struck the earth but it must have been hundreds if not thousands of years ago due to the weathered surface of the parts of the meteorite that were exposed. The unique surface of this meteorite has an interesting lovely brown textured surface somewhat reminiscent of dinosaur skin. This complete partially oriented 392 gram specimen is 3X2.3 inches and has a one inch section that has completely melted over from the front side to the back during its fiery entry into the atmosphere. Almost all of this rare meteorite has been found either in the 45 meter Kamil impact crater or in a small area surrounding it. Add $15 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $700 - 1,000 View details and enlarged photo	Realized $570
Lot 845		Premium Group of Four Amber Nuggets, This collection of four premium quality clear young amber nuggets from Colombia contains large and dramatic insects in very clear amber nuggets. 1. A big mosquito with a 1 inch wing span in a large 2.75 x 2 inch nugget with several flies and midges. 2. A .8 inch long winged termite plus a fly and other wings in a 1.5 x 1 inch nugget. 3. Two .4 inch long stingless bees in a thick 1.25X1 inch amber nugget. 4. A .5 inch cockroach in a 1.75 x .75 inch amber nugget. The absolute age of young Colombian amber or copal cannot be determined as amber itself cannot be tested and dated, but from the color and hardness of these nuggets, experts suggest their age to be at least 1-5 million years old or older. Each special nugget has a photo of the main insect included and the collection is housed in a 12 x 8 inch Riker mount. Add $15 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $400 - 500 View details and enlarged photos	Realized $450
Lot 846		Russian Aberrant Ammonite, Most ammonites have the familiar tight spiral shape that is so familiar, but some ammonites known as aberrant (heteromorphic) ammonites began to straighten out forming a variety of odd, interesting shapes. Why this happened after more than 200 million years of having only the spiral shape is unknown, but some species did change 70-120 million years ago. This large 9 inch long ammonite from Russia (Ancyloceras matheronianum) is over 100 million years old and has an unusual mostly uncoiled shape that started out with a tight curl and then began in uncoil as it grew larger. This large and spectacular ammonite is nearly complete with just the smallest inner curls missing with its original white mother-of-pearl shell coating fossilizing to an iridescent brown and tan with splashes of white still present. This museum quality ammonite is nicely contrasted against its original black slate matrix. Add $30 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $1,250 - 1,600 View details and enlarged photo	Unsold
Lot 847		Spinosaurus Foot Claw and Tooth, Made famous in "Jurassic Park III" as the dinosaur that killed a T-Rex, the enormous theropod dinosaur Spinosauru, with a huge sail on its back, remains an enigmatic dinosaur as no even remotely-complete skeleton has been found and the only partial skeleton was destroyed in World War II. Spinosaurus is mostly known from its teeth, which are fairly common, but usually broken and ugly. Claws are rarely found and certainly not big claws such as the 3.6 inch complete museum-quality foot claw showing all of the bold grooves with a perfect tip with just some crack. Claws are much rarer than teeth because dinosaurs could replace their teeth but not their claws. Also included is a gigantic quality 5 inch long tooth that was found in two pieces and put back together with excellent brown enamel, a partial 2 inch root with just a little tooth wear and minor chipping on the tip. This 80 million year old dinosaur claw and tooth were found in the Kem Kem Valley near Taouz, Morocco. These museum quality fossils are housed in a 8 x 6 inch Riker mount. Add $20 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $1,400 - 1,700 View details and enlarged photo	Unsold
Lot 848		Termites and Twigs in Colombian Amber, Amber is fossilized tree resin. Some trees produce resins to help heal breaks and gashes. Occasionally insects become trapped in the sticky amber and are mummified (dessicated) with incredible preservation of soft tissues, muscles, microscopic detail and sometimes even color. DNA has been retrieved from amber over 65 million years old, afromthe time of the dinosaurs. The age of amber itself cannot be determined. Only the rock it is deposited in can be tested. Colombian amber is found mostly in the Andes mountains in remote regions and has not been properly dated. This amber with the classic golden honey color like Dominican Amber is probably between 1- 5 million years old. Such is the probable age of this extremely large 5.5 x 4 x 2 inch clear amber nugget weighing 530grams (over one pound). This magnificent clear amber nugget has been polished on all sides revealing a termite colony on the bottom third, twigs and leaves throughout, a one inch white section of a flower, fungus and a rare large 100mm anhydro. An anhydro is a bubble that still contains liquid (probably water) inside it. This massive anhydro bubble is attached to a stem of some type of plant and this liquid water is 1-5 million years old. This museum quality rich golden amber nugget comes with a 3 x 5 inch clear illusion stand for display. Add $15 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $800 - 1,000 View details and enlarged photos	Realized $960
Lot 849		Two Huge Spiny Trilobites and Starfish, At 7 inches and 6 inches these two complete well detailed Selenopeltis bucchi trilobites are very large for spiny trilobites in. The 3-D detail is phenomenal with its small eyes, distinctive body bumps and delicate spines being clear with even small details defined. What makes this 22 x 17 inch limestone slab so special is the presence of four complete large ophiuroid brittle starfish up to 6 inches in diameter plus two partial brittlestars are found in their natural positions from their burial in the warm Ordovician seas of Erfoud, Morocco over 475 million years ago. This is an esthetically pleasing natural grouping that illustrates what type of sea creatures were present together in the ancient 475 million year old ocean. Add $35 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $1,200 - 1,800 View details and enlarged photo	Realized $1,080
Lot 850		Two Opalized Belemnites, The best quality of fire opal comes from the famous Cooper Pedy region of Australia. As rare as fire opals are, they are much rarer to find in a fossil. This 4 x 2 inch natural cream colored stone matrix contains two .8 inch long opalized belemnites that have been polished to reveal the fine fire opal of reds, greens and blues. Belemnites are an extinct group of cephalopods that are related to squid and the chambered nautilus. The only part of the extinct belemnite that fossilizes is the torpedo shaped shell that is contained inside its body and makes it rigid for swimming. This is a rare opportunity to purchase gemstones contained in a fossil. Add $15 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $500 - 750 View details and enlarged photo	Unsold
Lot 851		Libyan Desert Glass, Tektites are a mixture of earth rocks mixed with a sprinkling of meteorite material from an immense explosive event that occurred when a very large rocky meteorite vaporized before impacting the earth. The resulting mixture forms glass-like mixture. The color is usually black but it can also be green or yellow depending on the amount of silica present. This huge 935 gram (over 2 pounds) 6 x 4.5 inch large specimen of Libyan Desert Glass is unusually pristine from being buried in the Sahara sand (near the border of Libya and Egypt) with no sandblasting on the surface. It is lovely medium green color and looks somewhat like a melting candle with long crystals that are open on top and also has some of the cratered surface that is typical for Libyan Desert Glass. This is one of the largest specimens of Libyan Desert Glass ever auctioned and is dramatically mounted on a 3 inch lucite illusion stand for display. Add $15 for domestic shipping. Estimated Value $750 - 1,000 View details and enlarged photo	Realized $510