Odd Egyptian fossil

[Skaldi]

Hello,

This strange fossil was found in Egypt by my mother. It's roughly 4 inches long and weighs a little under 1 kg. It's shaped like a pear and has four holes, three at the bottom and one on the side towards the tapering top. See attached photos.

Side:

Front (I assume?):

The three holes at the bottom:

Any guess as to what this could be? Thanks in advance!

[Ludwigia]

Looks like a weathered concretion to me.

https://www.google.de/search?q=concretion&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiUkYTAisbKAhUJFCwKHRWLCywQ_AUIBygB&biw=1600&bih=766

[Skaldi]

Hello Ludwigia,

So you don't think it's a fossil? What about the hole at the top? It's too symmetrical and complex, in my unqualified opinion. I uploaded an outlined closeup but someone edited it away along with my comment.

My mom also found two large fossilized shells at the same site:

Here's a closeup. Please, moderator, don't delete it!

Edited January 25, 2016 by Skaldi

[Runner64]

I agree wth Ludwiga.

[jgcox]

Agree with Ludwiga.

[GeschWhat]

Welcome to the forum!

I can't tell you what it is, but find it very intriguing. When I first saw it it reminded me of the weevil cocoons found in southern Australia, but they are smaller, have an oval rather than pear shape, and have a rounded opening. The imprint on top is looks as though something organic (vertebra?) or possibly man-made popped out of there . Two of the three holes on the end look almost like clam borings, but one seems to have an interesting pattern. The three holes remind me of the three indents you find on the bottom of a coconut. Could this be some sort of seed pod? I am not an expert, in any sense of the word, and have no idea what this could be. I am just throwing observations out there. I love concretions, and often collect them when I see fun shapes. I'm just not getting a concretionary vibe from this one. In my humble opinion, I think it is worth exploring further. Your mother has a good eye!

Edited January 26, 2016 by GeschWhat

[paco]

It's something weathered for sure. But it could be a weathered bivalve stonecore or a concretion containing a bivalve core, hence the symmetrical, complex hole. I have no theory for the three holes...

[Skaldi]

Thank you all for your replies!