Only a moth eaten note for an i.d.

[DE&i]

 

I’ve only a moth-eaten note in the bottom of this old matchbox which I presume once had the description of this fossil. I can’t tell you much more about it I’m afraid, just that it’s a fossil and would appear to be hollow and is quite light in weight.

Sorry not much to go by,

Any help would be much appreciated please.

 

 

 

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

Looks too big for a tentaculitid, so maybe an orthoconic nautiloid?

And I think the moths are innocent, looks like silverfish chomp marks to me, they're always munching my labels, the little blighters. 

[minnbuckeye]

Crinoid stem? Maybe someone can provide a little more in the way of ID. This stem alternates between wide spaces and narrow spaces so it may be useful to narrow down possibilities.

[DE&i]

Thank you @Tidgy's Dad and @minnbuckeye they are very observant replies. It's certainly not a nautiloid or crinoid stem. The texture when held in the hand feels crisp and very brittle. 

[Ash]

Is it magnetic? Sort of looks like a bit of threaded rod lol.

 

except it doesn’t look rusty - looks like stone 

[DE&i]

Hi @Ash not magnetic I'm afraid far from it lol. But yes I agree to a threaded rod like appearance. It feels and looks like something you have sticking out of a posh ice-cream desert. 

[Al Dente]

It might be a steinkern of a crinoid stem.

 

 

[Jeffrey P]

I'm thinking crinoid stem section. If it was replaced with silica which that specimen looks like it might be,  that would change the texture. 

[erose]

Crinoid for sure. And yeah, silverfish are the culprits who ate your label. Been dealing with them for years. But it wasn't until I moved to Texas that I learned how big they could get!

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

1 hour ago, erose said:

Crinoid for sure. And yeah, silverfish are the culprits who ate your label. Been dealing with them for years. But it wasn't until I moved to Texas that I learned how big they could get!

 

They're pretty big here :

[Ludwigia]

I agree with the others that this is crinoid stem section steinkern. I have similar samples from Ontario.

[t-tree]

In Derbyshire UK they are known as "Derbyshire Screws" as they look like screws that are in the limestone of the area,

 

Crinoid ( Derbyshire screw)

 

 

John

[DE&i]

Wow, thank you everyone for your thoughts and opinions. As I'd never have thought crinoid stem section. You learn something everyday, and here especially on the TFF you get to learn more about your fossil collections. 

[Mark Kmiecik]

Except that a crinoid steinkern wouldn't be hollow. It would have a solid core since the hollow is filled to create the steinkern. How is it that it is hollow? I'm not saying it isn't possible, just can't think of a process that would do that.

[minnbuckeye]

23 hours ago, Mark Kmiecik said:

How is it that it is hollow?

I looked long and hard at that possibility and came up with the conclusion, it only appears hollow due to shadows on a broken end. Maybe @DE&i can clarify this with some decent pictures of both ends. 

 

 Mike

[DE&i]

@Mark Kmiecik and @minnbuckeye ill certainly take some more photos, I'm quietly confident it's hollow though. Can someone show me a crinoid steinkern that's not hollow for comparison please. 

[digit]

A crinoid internal steinkern does seem to explain this odd item better than anything else I can think of. Most of the internal casts seen online are likely the result of sediment material infilling the void inside and between the separate discs. However, I can envision a silica-rich liquid forming a durable internal cast much like the start of how an agate fills a void with microcrystalline quartz. If a steady supply of this silica-rich material dwindled you would have something that looks remarkably like your piece--the world's weirdest looking corrugated straw.

 

Just my non-authoritative thoughts on how a hollow internal cast might form. It's a very cool and enigmatic piece.

 

 

Cheers.

 

-Ken

[DE&i]

Cheers @digit and well put indeed..

[caldigger]

19 hours ago, digit said:

A crinoid internal steinkern does seem to explain this odd item better than anything else I can think of. Most of the internal casts seen online are likely the result of sediment material infilling the void inside and between the separate discs. However, I can envision a silica-rich liquid forming a durable internal cast much like the start of how an agate fills a void with microcrystalline quartz. If a steady supply of this silica-rich material dwindled you would have something that looks remarkably like your piece--the world's weirdest looking corrugated straw.

 

Just my non-authoritative thoughts on how a hollow internal cast might form. It's a very cool and enigmatic piece.

 

 

Cheers.

 

-Ken

Not unlike a geode would form.  That was my take as well.  Crystallization begins on the outer walls and works toward the middle.

[t-tree]

Another Derbyshire screw to the left of this piece is a thin spindle of limestone that is all that is left of a small crinoid.

 

 

John

[Mark Kmiecik]

I think @digit has nailed it. Bravo.

[siteseer]

Old matchboxes are often just the right size for fossil containers.  People at the flea market sell them cheap so I've bought a few.  

 

"I've only a moth-eaten note at the bottom of this old matchbox" sounds like a line from a song.  Maybe some of our resident poets can do something with it.

 

@snolly50