Any ideas what this is?

[KECO86]

I found this the other day and the distinct shape immediately caught my eye. It was found in the Raton basin at about 7500 feet. I found it on a hillside about 50 feet up from the river. There were many broken leaf fossils around and other interesting patterns that I believe were plant based (wood, roots, etc.)  The rock is 4.75" x 3.25".  The anomaly is 2.25" from edge of rock to the tip and about 1.5" at it's widest point.

[Jdeutsch]

it could be a stem that is partially exposed.  As you noticed, there are lots of plant fossils and coal seams in that basin

 

 

https://nmgs.nmt.edu/publications/guidebooks/downloads/27/27_p0197_p0203.pdf

[piranha]

It's a partial fossil palm frond: Sabalites sp.

 

 

figure from:

 

Brown, R.W. (1962)
Paleocene flora of the Rocky Mountains and Great Plains.
United States Geological Survey Professional Paper, 375:1-119  LINK

 

[FossilDudeCO]

Yup, Piranha nailed it.

I have seen these before from around that area. DMNS has quite a few in collections.

 

Very nice find!

[jpc]

Yup... Palm leaf.  I agree... Nice find.

[6ix]

Eocene - Nice find!

[KECO86]

Ok thank you everyone. I was leaning  towards it being a palm but of the ones I found in an image search I didn't see any with a pointed stem like that. Am I right in thinking that because of the stark contrast and the lines left in the rock that the stem was fossilized and the leaf itself just left an impression?

[jpc]

yes.... palm leaves are often preserved as just impressions like this one.