14.7" Proterozoic Columnar Stromatolite (Asperia) - Australia

This is a cut/polished section of a columnar stromatolite (Asperia ashburtonia) from the 2 billion year old Duck Creek Dolomite in Western Australia. One side of the specimen has been polished, while the opposite has been left in its rough state. This huge specimen weighs just under 32 lbs.

Stromatolites are the layered trace fossils of microbial life, primarily cyanobacteria. Some of them date back an astounding 3.4 billion years, making them the oldest record of life on Earth! Stromatolites and Microbialites were typically formed in shallow water by the growth of layer upon layer of cyanobacteria, a single-celled, photosynthesizing microbe. These layers often form very beautiful and colorful banded structures in the rock.

These oxygen-producing cyanobacteria were so simple they lacked a DNA-packaging nucleus, but were responsible for possibly the largest changes the earth has undergone. They were the only major source of atmospheric oxygen critical for the development of more complex life.
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DETAILS
SPECIES
Asperia ashburtonia
LOCATION
Paraburdoo, Western Australia
FORMATION
Duck Creek Dolomite
SIZE
14.7 x 9.5", up to 3.8" thick
CATEGORY
ITEM
#130823
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