First fossil hunting experience - Quick trip to the Kromer quarry near Holzmaden (Germany)

[Maxaurus]

Hi,

 

as me and a friend visited some other friends of us in Bavaria this week, we went to the Kromer quarry near Holzmaden (Germany) which was on the way. It was my/our first fossil hunting trip. Unfortunately we haven't much time, we were only there for 2 hours but since the weather was horrible the last weeks and we were already close we wanted to take the chance. When we arrived at the quarry we already saw more than 20 cars parking there. I wasnt sure if they all go for a walk or something.. no - they all go the Kromer quarry hunting fossils. Wow! Almost 60 people were here - I really didn't expect that.

 

The first hour we worked on larger plates on a plateau, they split much easier but the layers weren't that fossil-rich. The second hour we went to a different location...there we splitted some smaller plates, sometimes they broke but we found some good layers with a lot of ammonites.

 

We mainly found Dactylioceras ammonites and also some clam shells(?), see below some fotos. I really like that these gold shimmering ammonites look very noble in their natural matrix.

 

It turned out, that I am very unlucky that day.. when I splitted some plates the ammonites have always been in the area where I put the chisel. But hey, everyone has their strengths.

 

As we are beginners we were fascinated by our finds. For me it's not only about the quality of the fossil, it is also impressive to be the first one to ever see that fossil after such a long time and it is much more special finding fossils on your own instead of buying a fossil of probably higher quality. However for our next trip we need much more time but that was a good first impression. We already plan another trip to the Kromer quarry and also to the Mühlheim quarry near Solnhofen (Germany) in September or maybe October when the Munich Fossil show takes place.

 

Have a nice day.

Max

[rocket]

Hi Max, thanks for the nice impression.

The ammonites you found belong to Dactylioceras commune. They sometimes really have nice colors like yours, congrets!

The shells should all belong to Bostria buchii. In former times they were named "Posidonia bronni" and gave the shale´s name ("Posidonia-shale").

best, Frank

[traveltip1]

Excellent first fossil hunt.....hopefully many more to follow.

[Maxaurus]

Thanks guys

Does anyone know if the ammonites fade over time due to light exposure? What can I do to prevent this? I would like to display some in a frame or on a stand.

 

Thank you in advance.

 

Best regards

Max