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Vinctifer Comptoni - any flags on this?


Steveosaurus

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This fossil caught my eye the first time I saw it, and I keep going back to it, but I haven't gotten it for two reasons: first, it's a little out of my range, and secondly I want to be sure about it before doing anything foolish.

 

It's advertised as a Vinctifer Comptoni, and I have no doubts about the identification, but in researching these fish I saw mention of many fakes and/or composites. However, I've tried to see any composite work or "fakery" on this particular fossil and I don't see any. The problem is my complete inexperience, so I thought I'd bring it to the experts here. I'll attach photos of the fossil and the back side of it. I think what has caught my eye most is the sort of dark brown "mud", as in the eye socket and various places on this, but I don't know if that's anything more than something to stabilize areas of the fossil.

 

I really appreciate you taking a look - of course I want this to be genuine and unworked, but I am completely open to whatever verdict you may have.

 

 

s-l1600.jpg

s-l1600 (1).jpg

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Actually, this looks like a very nice specimen.  

It's a little more rugged, than some, but overall very nice.  :) 

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    Tim    VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER

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"In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks."
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I don't see obvious signs of fakery; it looks pretty good to me.  Of course, you should always ensure you can return it if something turns up once you have it in hand.  A photo or two can never fully substitute for in-hand examination.  But if you like it and can afford it, I'd say go for it.

 

Don

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Thank you for taking the time to check this fossil out! I just bought it, so I'm excited and almost more relieved, as I've been looking at it for a very long time and now I'm glad that's over (hahaha). Thank you for your valued opinions.

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 Im not saying these area's have been repaired but these look 'fishy' to me.  Really hard to tell without it being in front of my face with my Opti-visor on.  But really, a very cool fish with the way it doubles back on itself.   Ive seen a ton of these and this one is better than most. 

 

RB

vinctifer comptoni 2.jpg

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I can live with repairs, but I'd be very disappointed if this were a composite (which I don't see). You're saying this is still one individual fish, with some repair to the fossil, right?

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I think it has little repairs like RJB said. Furthermore some missing parts, as can be seen very obviously. No Fake imo, in the worst case a composit.  

 

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Repairs don't bother me, so I'm comfortable with this fossil. I know it wasn't prepared by someone who cared a whole lot, and it looks like it got some rough handling in the process, but overall it's the coolest fossil I have in my very small collection (including three St. Clair fossil fern plates and a standard "dime a dozen" Green River fish fossil).

 

If I knew anything about cleaning up a fossil and I had the tools, I would probably (carefully) try to clean this one up a little, but that's something I have zero experience with. I would really like to clean out the eye socket a little, and I might try that some day, just to even it out a little, because right now it looks like someone just took a finger full of goop and mashed it in there. Picky, picky...I'll just be happy to get it on the stand I have for it (the fossil is in today's mail - woohoo!).

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  • 2 weeks later...

Just an update, now that the fossil has been in my home for a little while. I'm very happy with it, and it displays very nicely. I wanted to show you what it looks like in natural light, as opposed to the seller's photo in artificial light. You'll notice that I did work on getting the "mud" (whatever the preparer used) out of its eye socket, which was a scary proposition for me to try, but it looks better than a glop of mud in its eye (I think so, anyway). I'm very pleased with this fossil, and thank you again for your opinions leading up to my purchasing it.

 

The perspective is just slightly different, as it displays more upright than in the seller's photo, where it was laid flat on a table.

 

 

 

s-l1600.jpg.d5559ada12a1a5984bae6c9f0b4e25c2a.jpg

Edited by Steveosaurus
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Glad it came in, and looks as nice as it does! Good deal. :) 

    Tim    VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER

   MOTM.png.61350469b02f439fd4d5d77c2c69da85.png      PaleoPartner.png.30c01982e09b0cc0b7d9d6a7a21f56c6.png.a600039856933851eeea617ca3f2d15f.png     Postmaster1.jpg.900efa599049929531fa81981f028e24.jpg    VFOTM.png.f1b09c78bf88298b009b0da14ef44cf0.png  VFOTM APRIL - 2015  

__________________________________________________
"In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks."
John Muir ~ ~ ~ ~   ><))))( *>  About Me      

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It looks a lot better with the mud removed. Good job! Display that one proudly. :thumbsu:

The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it.  -Neil deGrasse Tyson

 

Everyone you will ever meet knows something you don't. -Bill Nye (The Science Guy)

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Thank you very much - I do display it proudly, for sure. I have a very modest fossil collection due to very modest means, so this one is the highlight of the group by far. Since what I can afford is very common, I like to look for things that are a little different, so seeing an example of this fish curled up like it is was something that caught my eye. I looked at it for probably a year before buying it...I figured if it was pulling at me for that long, it belonged in my house (hahaha)!

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2 hours ago, Steveosaurus said:

Thank you very much - I do display it proudly, for sure. I have a very modest fossil collection due to very modest means, so this one is the highlight of the group by far. Since what I can afford is very common, I like to look for things that are a little different, so seeing an example of this fish curled up like it is was something that caught my eye. I looked at it for probably a year before buying it...I figured if it was pulling at me for that long, it belonged in my house (hahaha)!

I understand having modest means for sure! Nothing wrong with not being able to throw down a lot of money on fossils. 90% of my fossils are found by me, and are typically common for the area. The other 10% are usually gifts from someone. I spend very little myself. Though occasionally my wife will splurge and buy me something awesome for a special occasion. ;) 
 

Luckily I live in an area that is rich in fossils. Usually it only cost me a little gas, and a little of my time. Others are not so lucky and can only purchase or trade to get anything. 
 

We all do what we can, when we can, for the love of ancient life. Thankfully this obsession isn’t biased towards the rich or the poor and TFF welcomes one and all! 

 

I know next to nothing about ancient fish, but if this is a common one, then you have a good eye for the best specimen of a common species. Keep it up! I would venture to guess that if this represents the rest of your “modest” collection you are doing alright! :) 

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The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it.  -Neil deGrasse Tyson

 

Everyone you will ever meet knows something you don't. -Bill Nye (The Science Guy)

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19 hours ago, FossilNerd said:

I would venture to guess that if this represents the rest of your “modest” collection you are doing alright! :) 

You'd be surprised what an understatement "modest" is - I have this fish, three St.Clair fern plates, a small typical Green River fish, and two black ammonite pieces (one ammonite split and polished). That's my entire "collection", but I live in a small apartment, and they work well together to dress the place up. :)

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