Lot 1748
Rare Collection of the First Multicelled Animals - Early Cambrian Period. At over 535 million years, the amazing soft-bodied fossils of Chengjang, China are the earliest fossils of animal life in the fossil record. Before the beginning of the Cambrian 543 million years ago, all of the ancestors of animals were microscopic in size. These exotic Chingjang creatures were also small and mostly soft bodied, but remarkable preserved in fine-grained limestone. Making them even more desirable is the fact that the other famous Cambrian fossil site, the Burgess Shale, has been closed to collecting for 50 years.
This varied collection includes: (1) A huge 1¼ in. (huge for early Cambrian) Isopyxparadoxos, which was a bivalved orthopod with its entire body enclosed within the carapace. (2) ¾ in. Hyolithid, which was a straight mollusk-like animal with one of the first shells. The animals had tentacles but what they were is still unknnown. (3) ½ in. Long Leancholia in a side view which clearly shows its segmented body and head shield. These weird arthopods were blind and used long, whip-like appendages to sense their environment. Displayed in a Ryker mount for easy removal. For domestic shipping, add $20.
Estimated Value $600 - 800.
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| Realized $444 |
