ISUA ROCK - Greenland. Rock that provided evidence of the earliest known life on Earth

ISUA ROCK

3.7 billion years old

Rock that has provided evidence of the earliest known life on Earth

Nuuk Region, Western Greenland

A small slice of layered iron and chert from a sequence of early Precambrian rocks known as the Isua Greenstone Belt (also known as the Isua Supracrustal Belt) in Western Greenland.

These metamorphosed marine sediments contain graphite which has been interpreted as representing traces of early life that flourished in the oceans at least 3.7 billion years ago. Recently, in 2016, melting ice in this area revealed patterns in rocks that are thought to be remnants of primordial microbial colonies called stromatolites. This discovery, although still controversial, indicates that life on Earth must have first evolved over 4 billion years ago.

Just how life could have begun so early in the history of the planet, and why it took so long for complex organisms to appear, is the subject of continued scientific debate.

Presented in a vintage plastic display box with a hinged lid.
 
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