Imagine holding in your hand a 110 million year old fossil.  Some ammonites are much older than that, up to 450 million years old.  Even older than the dinosaurs.  Oceans at the time were teeming with life.  Predators were everywhere.  And it was a live fast, or die hard world for the ammonites.  In fact, ammonites closely resemble modern squids, octopus and the chambered nautilus.  Ammonites were carnivores as well. 

Fossils were once found only in museums - NOW you can OWN one!!!  You can hold in your hand a part of the ancient fossil record from the time the dinosaurs roamed the earth.

This is the NEW batch from Madagascar.  I brought in for TUCSON SHOW with some of the best color and deepest cavities/pockets around, excellent batch!!!  Super nice crystals, absolutely the best I have seen in years.

Description:  Ammonite Pair Split, Cut and Polished.  LESS THAN 1 in 100 is a black ammonite.  Very RARE and highly prized by collectors. 
Cleoniceras - These most colorful ammonites come from Madagascar, off the coast of Africa.  Cleoniceras is the most common type in Madagascar.  99% of the ammonites found in Madagascar are this species, with a smooth shell and angled segments.  The animal actually lived in the very last segments.  Variations in price are due to color differences and how many crystal cavities (or open 'cave like' structures) in the segments.  On average 110 million years old.

----------------------------------------------------------

Facts about ammonites -

Closest living relative - Octopus, Squid, Cuttlefish and it's closest cousin the Nautilus.     

First appeared - in shallow seas 450 million year ago.            

Extinct - in a catoclysmic event in the Cretaceous, with the dinosaurs about 65 million years ago.

Began life - less than 1 mm in diameter.  About the size of a period in this sentence.  But they grew fast.                                                                                                                                  

Females - reported to grow 400% bigger than males.            

Shells - comprised of chambers growing as the ammonite did.  Making 13 new chambers each year.  The ammonite lived in the last section, called the living segment.

Medieval Europe - Ammonites were thought to be petrified snakes.  They were called "snakestones" or "serpent stones".  Ammonites were said to be evidence for the actions of St. Hilda and St. Patrick - who drove the snakes out of Ireland.  In ancient times, traders would carve the face of a snake into the wide end of the ammonite fossil and sell them to the public.

The name Ammonite - comes from their spiral shape.  The fossilized shells somewhat resembled tightly coiled rams' horns.  Pliny the Elder (79 A.D. near Pompeii) called these fossils - ammonis cornua ("horns of Ammon") .  Because the Egyptian god Amman was typically depicted wearing ram's horns.

-----------------------------------------------

Types of ammonites - 

Cleoniceras - These most colorful ammonites come from Madagascar, off the coast of Africa.  Cleoniceras is the most common type in Madagascar.  99% of the ammonites found in Madagascar are this species, with a smooth shell and angled segments.  The animal actually lived in the very last segments.  Variations in price are due to color differences and how many crystal cavities (or open 'cave like' structures) in the segments.  On average 110 million years old. 

Cymatoceras - Wide body Madagascar ammonites.  Some stand on their own and do not need stands.  Much rarer than the regular narrow body Cleoniceras.  More like a Wide Body Nautilus. (Limited quantities) Almost all gone.  They are past this level of digging.

Perisphinctes - Less than 1% of Madagascar ammonites are this type.  Ridges are on the back with a complete different growth pattern.  The chambers are also more compact and of a different shape.  Frequently one of the most brightly colored.  On normal ammonites, the middle is thicker.  On Perisphinctes the inner coils are smaller which is a rare occurance among ammonites.  These always command a high price.  (RARE)  Just two in the last shipment.

Fire ammonites -  Also from Madagascar.  Notoriously hard to photograph.  Fire ammonites have a gorgeous jewel red flash to them.  In fact this jewel red flash is so hard to photograph that we have to take over 100 pictures, just to get 10 good photos.  Similiar to opals in their brilliance.  Occasional flashes of blue, green and purple can be seen.  Fire ammonites look much better in person than in the photograph.  (LIMITED QUANTITY) SOLD OUT!!

Rainbow iridescent - Running from blue to white in base color, iridescents have a multiple color personality all their own.  These are hard to photograph as well.  Stunning blue, green, red and pink can be seen as they are moved in the light. Not as hard to photograph as the FIRE RED, but still hard to photograph.  Again these are found in Madagascar only rarely.  (LIMITED QUANTITY) SOLD OUT!!

Pyrite ammonites - Pyrite actually replaces the animal shell.  A very odd occurance.  (Calcite replaces the animal shell in most of the other ammonites.)  Pyrite ammonites are species Kosmoceras. Kosmoceras frequently have a opalized shell on the outside.  Occasionally this shell is rainbow iridescent.  Stunning colors of red, green, blue and other bright colors.  In Russia, they use a chemical solution to remove the shell on one-half of the ammonite.  This exposed the pyrite segments inside.  These are only found in Russia, in the Volga River area.  Most are around 165 million years old. Very LOW.

Orthoceras - Straight ammonites from Morocco.  Frequently found with round Morocco ammonites called goniatites.  About 400 million years old, some of the oldest ammonites.  (moderately common)  Big ones are rare.

Goniatites - Curved ammonites from Morocco.  Small ones are moderately common.  Large ones up to 12" are much rarer and in higher demand as decorator pieces. The reason?  The wide ones frequently stand by themselves.  Usually grey, black and white in color. Sometimes in earth tones.  Goniatites are frequently 400 million years old, some of the oldest ammonites.  (small ones moderately common, large are rarer - especially ones over 6") ONLY a few large ones in Tucson, they found very few this year. 

UK ammonites - We occasionally have Rainbow colored (2-3") Psilocercy from Dorset England.  About 200 million years old.  And small black & white Promicoceras from Lyme Regis, Dorset, which rarely exceed 1".    We have a few golden black Dactiloceras from Whitby, UK.  About 165 million years old. (VERY LIMITED QUANTITY) SOLD OUT!!!

On a recent trip to Germany - I was able to acquire a few Orthosphinctes from Malm gamma, Bischberg.  Nice greenish yellow 2-3" ammonites on matrix. (LIMITED QUANTITY) SOLD OUT!!!

Check our other listings for these and other types of fine ammonites!!!

------------------------------------------------

New Tucson Ammonite finds:

Madagascar:

***NEW FIND***

Margarite Daisy ammonite (probably Choffaticeras) - Brand new find from Madagascar!!!!  So they are in all probability only found at ONE level of digging.   The people in Madagascar call them Margarite or "Daisy" flower ammonites as they resemble a daisy flower.  Chambers have large crystal cavities with nice botryoidial (bumpy) formations.  Supersize the pictures for better viewing.

Still doing research on the scientific name - probably Choffaticeras.  But in any case VERY RARE.  All fossils have some restoration, and this one is no different.  From the front you can not tell they have had restoration done.  The folks in Madagascar are that good.   That is why we show you back so you can see all. 

Colors range from brown to grey to the ones I bought are BLONDE.   Another dealer and good friend of mine had these, so I scooped up all the pretty ones he had.  Left a couple of grey ones for another dealer.  And yes they were not cheap, but when you see something this rare you have to grab it while is is available.  I saw only one other ammonite dealer in Tucson was WHOLESALING (selling to dealers/ stores) for over $2000 each.  Mine were much better color and more reasonably priced.

All of them appear to be HUGE as no small ones are found.  So don't bother asking.  Everything we have is listed.  And we found no small ones.  No one did.  Ultra RARE, get them while they last, and they will not last long.  Universities are buying them up, for scientific study.  They are that RARE.

Anapuzosia - WIDE Body with D shaped segments inside.  (Regular Cleoniceras have S shaped segments) These are from a new areas of Madagascar and I am not sure how much longer they will last.  Very deep crystal cavities make them desirable.  (Limited quantity) Almost sold out.

Phylloceras - WIDE Body with an odd V shape segment.  (Regular Cleoniceras have S shaped segments) These are from a new areas of Madagascar and I am not sure how much longer they will last. Very deep crystal cavities make them very desirable.   (VERY Limited)
Almost sold out.

Hemitetragonites and Neosilisites - Both are Medium Body not as wide as Cymatoceras, nor as thin as Cleoniceras.  Some where in the middle - Goldielocks would say, "Just right".  They are usually presented WHOLE.  Unique suture patterns on the outside.  And most interesting they have flattened sides.  They others are rounded. Really cool, some stand without a stand.  (Very Limited supply)
Almost sold out.

Melchlorites - Similiar to above but with a cross band on the sides and a rounded shell.  Medium body.  (Limited supply) Sold out.

Desmoceras - A Medium Body Ammonite similiar to the thin Cleoniceras, but wider body with a tighter coil of the shell. Usually with V- Shaped segments. Unlike the Cleoniceras which S-Shaped segments. ( Limited supply)

Douvilleiceras - Unusual in that it has a RIBBED back, 145 to 165 million years old.  Medium bodied, with "D" shaped segments. RARE and sell fast!!! Sold out.

MOROCCO - Wow did I find some great ones!!!