LARGE DOUBLE AMMONITE
LYME REGIS, UNITED KINGDOM, JURASSIC, 208-198 MILLION YEARS B.P.
African & Oceanic Art, Natural History and Ancient Art
Auction: 30 July 2025 from 14:00 BST
Description
carved and polished, a rare pair of Arietites sp. sitting within the original matrix and both displaying superb definition, the shells spun into perfect spirals
Dimensions
72cm long
Footnote
Note:
Ammonites first appeared on earth over 400 million years ago. They were extraordinarily abundant, with over 30,000 different species, and existed for twice the length of the dinosaurs. As such, millions of fossilised ammonite shells have been found all over the world. The animal itself would have lived within the end chamber of the shell, with the remainder used to control buoyancy in much the same way as the modern nautilus. They became extinct during the same asteroid impact that wiped out the dinosaurs, an event that reshaped Earth's life and geology, paving the way for new evolutionary developments.
The perfect geometry of ammonite shells has long been appreciated for the clarity and beauty of their natural structure. The present specimens are particularly notable for both their large size and the fact that two are preserved in close proximity within the same matrix.