FOSSIL SPONGE (very large) - 115 million years old - Faringdon, Oxfordshire
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115 million years old
Faringdon Sponge Gravels
Faringdon, Oxfordshire
A very fine and very large example of the sponge Raphidonema Faringdonense, a classic fossil from the Faringdon Sponge Gravels.
These gravels were formed during the Cretaceous period when the area was submerged beneath the sea. Sponges lived on the sea floor and when they died underwater currents swept them into hollows where they accumulated to form the gravels.
The Faringdon Sponge Gravels is part of the Lower Greensand. It is composed predominantly of the remains of calcareous sponges, with brachiopods, echinoderms and bryozoa. Derived fossils such as reptile bones from older formations also occur.
This specimen is from an old collection, thought to have been collected in the 1970s.
Click on a picture for a larger image
115 million years old
Faringdon Sponge Gravels
Faringdon, Oxfordshire
A very fine and very large example of the sponge Raphidonema Faringdonense, a classic fossil from the Faringdon Sponge Gravels.
These gravels were formed during the Cretaceous period when the area was submerged beneath the sea. Sponges lived on the sea floor and when they died underwater currents swept them into hollows where they accumulated to form the gravels.
The Faringdon Sponge Gravels is part of the Lower Greensand. It is composed predominantly of the remains of calcareous sponges, with brachiopods, echinoderms and bryozoa. Derived fossils such as reptile bones from older formations also occur.
This specimen is from an old collection, thought to have been collected in the 1970s.
Click on a picture for a larger image
Size: 14 x 8.5 x 7.5 centimetres
Weight: 497 grams
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