|
Sale 71
|
|
press UP arrow key to increase the zoom ratio.
press DOWN arrow key to decrease the zoom ratio.
press RIGHT arrow key to increase the zoom window size.
press LEFT arrow key to decrease the zoom window size.
|
|
Lot 650
Important 123 Million Year Old Bird Fossil With Feathers. This small 4.5 inch long primitive enantiornithine bird, Liaoxiornis delicatus was alive in the cretaceous period 122-124 million years ago. The only significantly older bird is Archaeopteryx from Germany at 150 million years old. This nearly complete bird from the Liaoning Province of Northeastern China is quite remarkable in its magnificent preservation. Birds have very delicate light weight bones that are only preserved under very special circumstances such as the rapid burial that occurred over 122 million years ago when an enormous volcanic eruption quickly killed and buried in ash this small toothed bird. The preserved detail is truly amazing with an excellent skull missing only the tip of its beak, delicate rib bones, small hand and feet bones and claws and even some black feather impressions surrounding the neck, tail, body and wings. It was believed that we would never know the color of a dinosaur or fossilized bird but recently it was discovered from fossilized feathers such as those on this specimen that microscopic melanosomes (pigment bearing organelles within feathers) can reveal the actual color when the bird or dinosaur was alive. The shape of the melanosomes is compared to the shape of melanosomes in modern birds and the color of the fossilized feathers is assumed to be the same if the melonosome shape is the same. Dark feather impressions such as those on this fossil bird have been found to be black or gray in living birds. This important bird fossil is nicely centered on a 6.5 x 5.5 inch soft tuffaceous stone matrix which is intact and not repaired like most encountered. This important rare bird skeleton is enclosed in a 12X8 inch riker mount for display and protection. A much younger and less detailed 50 million year old Green River bird recently sold to a museum for $15,000.
Add $50 for domestic shipping.
Estimated Value $3,000 - 4,000.
|
| |
| Realized $3,120 |
|
