Partial Thoracic Skeleton

[MYOR]

There is excavation for a housing development behind our home.  On examination of some large excavated limestone boulders, I noticed what appeared to be a cross-section of thoracic (rib cage) of a skeleton.  I suspect it is a fossil, being that there is a noticeable  pattern within the same layer of sedimentary rock.  I've attached a picture, please note the rust colored protrusions within the blue-gray limestone boulder.   Thank you for any input on whether my suspicions are reasonable.  If so, I intend to contact the construction company as to the location of where the boulder was excavated, and whether they are agreeable to removing it from construction use.

[Miocene_Mason]

Welcome to the forum from central Maryland

I can’t see it in this picture, do you have any more? I must say don’t get your hopes up too high, articulated ribs are very rare. There are some exceptions to this, for example a limestone quarry in Egypt is known for the many whale skeletons in it. Location is a big factor here, it would make or break the claim. Until you find that, check to see if it is ‘spongey’ M. You could also lick your finger and press it to it. If it sticks then it’s probably bone. You could also just lick it.  Good luck!

[Aurelius]

I don't see much in the way of uniformity, nor any bone texture. It's worth checking out, but I suspect it may turn out to be a row of concretions.

[oilshale]

Definitely check it out - try to dig out one of these whatever they are ..... bones? concretions?

[Fossildude19]

These look like concretions to me.  

 Where was this found? County?

 

Cropped and contrasted the photo:

 

[MYOR]

I found the boulder near our home in the Lebanon Valley of Pennsylvania.  The protrusions extend through the boulder and appear on the other side.  I included a picture with arrows indicating their approximate location.  Thank you everyone for your input!  

[Tidgy's Dad]

Looks like pebbles 'fossilized' along a bedding plane to me. 

[Carl]

I think they may be a line of chert nodules. These are quite commonly found in layers in limestone. Plus, it seems that all the rock layers around there are Paleozoic and mostly marine, circumstances that wouldn't at all be likely to produce a skeleton as large as this seems. That all said, I'd still love to see a close up to see if it looks like bone and I'd love to see some scale included. Ya never know.

 

And welcome to the Forum!

[Fossildude19]

I have to agree with Carl : Chert nodules.

 

Very similar to this photo:

 

 

Image taken from HERE.