8.3" Purple Iridescent Ammonite (Proaustraliceras) Fossil - Russia

Purple Iridescent Ammonite (Proaustraliceras) Fossil - Russia #228163

This is a large, 8.3" wide Proaustraliceras simbirskense ammonite fossil from the Lower Cretaceous (Aptian Stage), Deshayesi zone deposits of the Volga River in Russia. The preserved shell features a gorgeous purple iridescence that flashes in the light. The ammonite is partially pyritized, with pyrite still visible in spots around the specimen. It has been exposed from the hard limestone matrix it was found in. This is a gorgeous display piece and it comes with a stand to facilitate aesthetic presentation.

There has been some restoration and repair to the ammonite. Several cracks have been repaired and filled and it's likely some of the pyrite has been added.

Ammonites were predatory cephalopod mollusks that resembled squids with spiral shells. They are more closely related to living octopuses, though their shells resemble that of nautilus species. True ammonites appeared in the fossil record about 240 million years ago during the Triassic Period. The last lineages disappeared 65 million years ago at the end of the Cretaceous.

What an ammonite would have looked like while alive.

More about ammonites