What fossil in your collection in worth the most?

[Wolf89]

What fossil in your collection in worth the most? I don't know about mine... maybe a mammoth ivory fragment...

[Kane]

It very much depends what is meant by value. Market value is quite variable, and may not correspond to scientific value (which is tied to provenance, rarity of occurrence, or novelty). The personal value may also not correspond to either of these. For those of us who also collect in the field, there is personal value in how we came upon them (research, time, people we were with, collecting conditions). Or, the fossil may have been inherited from a now deceased collector. Value may also be subject to the quality, completeness, and/or preparation of the specimen. Several factors at play.

 

The "value" question is perhaps too subjective to answer. 

[Wrangellian]

Why not any or all of the above?

Which specimen do you value most personally; which did you pay the most for or which do you figure would sell for the most (without revealing a dollar figure); which one do you think is most scientifically significant? etc.

Could be an interesting topic.

 

[Bone guy]

Alright, I'll start this off with my current favorite.

 

This fossil is not in my hands (yet). I just bought it a few days ago, it will be a few weeks before he arrives. I'm super excited!  

 

This is Protopsephurus liui, a paddlefish (relative of sturgeons) from the late Jurassic of China. The name has an interesting translation: protos means "first" and psephurus means "pebble holder" which alludes to the early belief that this fish used it's paddle nose to sift through pebbles to look for food, which we now know is untrue. The paddle is lined with hyper sensitive hair shaped sensors that are used to detect prey items (plankton, small crustaceans, small fish), and the rest of the body is lined with smaller sensors. These fish literally have eyes on the back of their heads.  

 

Why do I value this fossil? For a few reasons:

 

Personal value: These fish have a mainly cartilaginous skeleton, kind of like sharks. So their preservation is rarer than bony fish. I find it amazing how all the small details are preserved. If you look at the snout, some of the small hair sensors are preserved! 

 

Scientific value: I'm actually unclear of how valuable to science this fish may be. I'd love to read more about it, but when I googled "Protopsephurus fish" I got 3 results . If anyone has more information, feel free to PM me!

 

Monetary value: Not going to reveal the actual price because I don't want to violate any rules. But currently it's the highest value piece in my collection.  

 

 

[Wrangellian]

Interesting!

 

I'd have to think about what is my most valuable fossil.... Might be 3 different ones.

[Tidgy's Dad]

I thought about this for a bit, but my head started hurting and I started to get dizzy. 

There's just so many answers. 

I'm just off to have a lie down.