Controversial Fruit Stone?: Walton on the Naze, Essex, UK

[FunkyMonkey]

Hi.
Controversial or me being fooled again?

Last year I was fooled by a rose thorn, so I have form lol

Anyway, I was going to leave this on the beach this morning as it’s clearly something like a peach pit / stone so *must* be modern and *cant* be a fossil. I read the post from 2018 on a similar find in Yorkshire so I did some tests:

It sinks in water

It “tings” when you hit it with a spoon

It does not burn when placed in the flame of a cooker burner

I cannot make a mark with a needle

However it does not seem as heavy as a natural stone of a similar size despite it sinking “like a stone”.
This site is known for fossil sharks teeth as well as wood, fruits and seeds from the London clay beds together with later ice age finds as well as human activity up to the Roman period. 
Should I throw this in the bin as modern or is this something more interesting. My money is on the former…… ;)

 

Thanks in advance!

 

[Fossildude19]

Very old and worn peach pit. 

[FunkyMonkey]

Thanks @Fossildude19. I’d agree with peach pit but I guess the question is how old? Are there further test for mineralisation I could do as it *seemed* to pass those asked of the previous post in 2018?

I understand that peaches are thought to have been cultivated no earlier than 2500, however I did read somewhere that similar fruit pits had been found in China dated to 2.5 million years BCE.

Wishful thinking on my part but at least it tipped my interest beyond the normal sand shark teeth you find here ;)

[Fossildude19]

Peaches were introduced to Britain in the 17th Century (1600's) . Could be from anytime after that.  

Technically modern. 

[val horn]

when in doubt take it to a local museum or fossil club.  When something passes all the test but "cannt be" take it to somebody in person.

[FunkyMonkey]

Thanks all. Im pretty sure its modern - what else could it be? But to satisfy my curiosity I will take it to a place that can tell me for certain and if / when I get a result I will post it here.

Thanks again! back to posting sharks teeth

Edited August 14, 2021 by FunkyMonkey

[Mark Kmiecik]

Half of a peach pit. And don't burn it to test it. Contains hydrogen cyanide, which if inhaled or ingested in sufficient quantity . . . . . . 

Edited August 17, 2021 by Mark Kmiecik

[Troodon]

Not a peach pit but an example of what a walnut would look like fossilized.  

 

Posted yesterday by the ROM

 

 

[Mahnmut]

10 hours ago, Mark Kmiecik said:

Half of a peach pit. And don't burn it to test it. Contains hydrogen cyanide, which if inhaled or ingested in sufficient quantity . . . . . . 

Thats technically true, but there is no danger in that one. The HCN is contained in the seed, not in its woodlike shell, and even eating the whole seed would not harm an healthy adult. There are people who do eat them for imagined alternative medicinal reasons, which can lead to poisoning when greater quantities are consumed.

 

Besides that I can only tell you that these shells are denser than water and "clinkingly" hard without additional mineralization. I also tend to call it rather a peach (old or new) than a walnut because the pattern looks a little bit spiral rather than straight.

Still a beautiful find that I would also have kept.

Best Regards,

J

[FunkyMonkey]

Thanks all. It continues to be in my curio spot rather than those for fossils until proven otherwise. Either way it’s a nice tactile object. 
I will be walking back via Holland on Sea today so maybe there’ll be something of actual age to post later

[val horn]

Now that it has had sufficient time to fully dry out i would see if you can scrape it with a finger nail, or see if it still sinks.    Some wood, seeds seem very hard when first picked up but when they fully dried out are clearly vegetable 

[FunkyMonkey]

Hi @val horn - it still passes the tests more than a week later but given the doubts its still on the ‘curio’ shelf where it looks at home ;)

[jdp]

On 8/18/2021 at 3:54 AM, Mahnmut said:

Thats technically true, but there is no danger in that one. The HCN is contained in the seed, not in its woodlike shell, and even eating the whole seed would not harm an healthy adult. There are people who do eat them for imagined alternative medicinal reasons, which can lead to poisoning when greater quantities are consumed.

 

Besides that I can only tell you that these shells are denser than water and "clinkingly" hard without additional mineralization. I also tend to call it rather a peach (old or new) than a walnut because the pattern looks a little bit spiral rather than straight.

Still a beautiful find that I would also have kept.

Best Regards,

J

 

Even a child needs to eat a bunch of peach pits to be at risk of cyanosis.

[Kane]

9 minutes ago, jdp said:

 

Even a child needs to eat a bunch of peach pits to be at risk of cyanosis.

Not to mention they don't taste all that good. Faster is going with oak leaves (which also taste awful). 

[val horn]

If it is fully dry and still sinks and still will not burn  it appears more real and less peach pit