Lepidodendron?

[M.Mark]

I bought this specimen many years ago in a small museum in Austria. The fossil itself is a very fragile flat piece of coal, was collected locally and sold by the same paleontologist who works in the museum itself. I cleaned it by myself since it was not prepared and covered in soil fragments, the real shape of the fossil had remained hidden behind a black layer of dust. When purchasing, I was told that it probably was a bark fragment from Alethopteris, but looking at it now I have the heavy suspect that it is instead a small Lepidodendron branch (excluding all the surrounding undefined plant material).

 

More detailed information: 

found on mount Königsstuhl in Nockalm, southern Austria

dated 330 million years, Middle Mississippian, Carboniferous

measures approximately 21,7 x 14,2 cm

 

This additional photo can be found on my Deviantart page, (am I allowed to post this link here?)

 

 

[Archie]

Beautiful specimen! This is indeed a Lepidodendron sp., there are clear spirally arranged leaf scars which are taller than they are wide. Someone more knowledgeable may be able to help you ID it to species level.

Welcome to the Forum

[M.Mark]

Thanks Archie!

[ynot]

Nice find!!

 

Tony