Petrified cone (Araucaria mirabilis)
Place Collected(Object)
: South America, Argentina, Santa Cruz, Cerro Cuadrado Dimensions:6 (H) x 6 (W) x 8 (L) cm
Object number: ROMIP56071
DescriptionDuring the Jurassic Period (150 million years ago) the main trees were cycads and their relatives, conifers, ginkgos, and seed ferns. The plants underneath the forest canopy were mainly ferns, liverworts, club mosses and horsetails. This cone of Araucaria, a relative of the Norfolk Island Pine, has been petrified—its tissues replaced by silica, preserving the finest details, including the seeds.