1.8# Silicified Coral Fossil Favosites Rock 2.5"x07"x04" Agate Honeycomb For Sale

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Located in Northern Middle Tennessee, each piece is selected for its individuality and aesthetics. Unsurpassed, each piece is a testament to the beauty of nature.This particular piece is called Favosites, which is an extinct kind of tabulate coral (tabulate means they have horizontal floors inside the partitions) characterized by polygonal closely packed corallites (coraallites are the individual tubes) and is commonly called honeycomb coral. (Looks like a Bee, hornet or wasp nest).Favosites colonies were composed of tightly packed, prismatic tubes called corallites. Each tube was inhabited by a single coral polyp, and their thin shared wallsfeatured small pores that allowed limited soft tissue connections between individuals. The internal horizontal plates or tabulae, divided the tubes and give the genus its tabulate coral classification.Silicified coral happens when the original calcium carbonate of an ancient coral skeleton is slowly dissolved and replaced by silica (quartz) molecules from groundwater. This process, which can take millions of years, preservers the corals intricate floral like internal structures in a durable gemstone like form.
Step -by-Step Process

• Burial and Sedimentation-Ancient coral dies and is rapidly buried under layers of sediment (like sand and mud) in a shallow marine environment. This burial prevents the coral from being completely eaten or broken down by ocean currents.
• Dissolution by Groundwater- As the surrounding sediments turn into sedimentary rock (like limestone), underground water saturated with silica percolates through. The acidic groundwater slowly dissolves the original, fragile calcium carbonate skeleton, creating microscopic empty voids.
• Silica Replacement- Almost exactly as the old coral material dissolves, the dissolved silica precipitates out of the groundwater and fills the empty spaces. This can happen in two primary ways. A) Silicification Replacement: The silica replaces the corals structure cell-by cell. This incredibly detailed process preserves delicate internal walls and ridges. B) Agatization (Void Fill): If the coral dissolves entirely, it leaves an external mold. Silica often in the form of chalcedony or quartz slowly fills the void, sometimes lining the inside with hollow crystal filled vugs or geodes.
• Because quartz is much harder and more resistant to weathering than the surrounding limestone, these fossils can often be found eroding out of creek beds.

THIS PARTICULAR PIECE IS A SILICIFICATION CORAL FOSSIL.You will not find another piece so detailed and intact, from the Ordovician period-450 million years ago, unless you are a collector or a Museum.
Tennessee was completely submerged beneath a warm shallow sea,200 Million years before Dinosaurs.
Silicified coral is perfectly safe for both freshwater and saltwater aquariums. Because the original calcium carbonate has been replaced by quartz, it is inert and will not alter your water chemistry. These pieces will also look great in decorating your aquarium room outside the tanks. The sparkle of the exposed quartz of some pieces are amazing!
Collectors of Rocks, Crystals, and Mineral Specimens will also love these pieces for display. Also great for office decor. Each Coral piece has been thoroughly cleaned to ensure the utmost beauty. All coral fossils are washed with tap water only. Golf ball in photos shows size comparison.We take extra care when packing our rocks. Extra bubble wrap, packing material, double and triple wall boxes. .
Size Inches: H-2.5,L-07,W-04 Weight: 1.8 pounds Stock # 181075 B121008