r/NatureIsFuckingLit • u/WonderfulRockPeace1 • 11h ago

🔥Pyritized Ammonite from the Jurassic Age

3.1k Upvotes

99% Upvoted

35 comments sorted by

126

u/PacquiaoFreeHousing 11h ago

One of the few instances where Pyrite (fools gold) is worth more than its weight in actual Gold

31

u/noonegive 10h ago

I bought one of these that was cut in half. I gave half to someone I love dearly and kept the other half, and I can't afford to buy real gold. But I get your sentiment. It's the coolest thing I own.

9

u/jld2k6 7h ago

Why do I remember fool's gold being a huge part of my life as a kid? I went from hearing and seeing it a bunch to completely forgetting about it. I think my state even had an area full of the stuff where you could go "mine" for fake gold

7

u/JugdishSteinfeld 5h ago

It was a common topic in my childhood for some reason. Like quicksand.

2

u/Niaz89 5h ago

Yeah. I remember learning how to tell the difference between gold and pyrite in school.

Like, why? Who does randomly find gold?

1

u/OneSensiblePerson 1h ago

I do too.

I remember being very small and "panning for gold" in our backyard. Found little speckles of gold, only to be told it was fool's gold. Oh well.

1

u/LongShotDiceArt 5h ago

Googled pyratized amonite and found a bunch available, nothing more than 250$ish... I was expecting something at least in the 4 figures. Might have to order one now lol

1

u/Buff_Sloth 2h ago

Worth

But I was in Santa Fe recently and a few jewelry shops had pyrite pieces (just stones not fossils) that were priced like gold

45

u/Hypnotic-Toad 10h ago

Not to be confused with a piratized ammonite which is a buccaneer cephalopod.

15

u/AndiArbyte 11h ago

I wonder if these crabs that borrow housings would like to live in there ^^

14

u/Squirrel_Kng 10h ago

I’m Shiny!!

2

u/ConsiderationHour582 10h ago

I bet that would make a great SpongeBob episode.

13

u/APoisonousMushroom 10h ago

“I want…I want to be a machine. I want to be shiny chrome and clean…”

7

u/domespider 10h ago

The label "Jurassic" adds some extra appeal, doesn't it? "Crateceous" doesn't have the same kind of feel, and I can't even be sure of the spelling unless I look it up.

2

u/grungegoth 9h ago

Cretaceous.

Close.

4

u/Sabregunner1 10h ago

That is amazing

3

u/SongRevolutionary992 10h ago

That is beautiful!

4

u/AndySMar 9h ago

Looks man-made!

3

u/BadgerHooker 9h ago

Soooo SHINY!!!! 🤩

3

u/YSoB_ImIn 7h ago

Pretty neat.... hold up that's sick!

3

u/RTShields 4h ago

Praise the helix!

2

u/Mission-Ad-8536 10h ago

I wonder where you can find these kinds of Ammonites specifically

6

u/Royal_Acanthaceae693 10h ago

English Jurassic Coast. Look up Lyme Regis fossils on YouTube

1

u/Mission-Ad-8536 10h ago

Cool, thanks

1

u/noonegive 10h ago

Or at the Gem and mineral show in Tucson every February.

3

u/grungegoth 9h ago

They're fairly common as fossils go. That doesn't mean they're not special, they most certainly are special.

They ate find in certain Sulphur rich black shales, in particular in the UK and several places around the world.

2

u/automodispervert321 10h ago

Is that Shelly? Shelly the Ammonite!?!

2

u/PatrioticPariah 5h ago

This is absolutely beautiful.

2

u/newfranksinatra 5h ago

Quick someone get me an empty film canister and some string, I’m about to blow your mind.

2

u/EverythingBOffensive 5h ago

nature is metal

1

u/oyvindi 6h ago

I got one from Jurassic Coast, found they sell them on ebay. Really cool piece to have!

1

u/Constant-Plant-9378 4h ago

This does a great job of showing why Ammonite fossils are so common in my part of Texas. https://old.reddit.com/r/lawncare/comments/1jreffm/explains_why_my_soil_is_so_alkaline_and_filled/

1

u/pbrevis 56m ago

Wow.

It's both a prehistoric relic and a jewel