EONS: CJ07 CHENGJIANG, SUPERBLY PRESERVED APPENDAGE

EONS: CJ07 CHENGJIANG, SUPERBLY PRESERVED APPENDAGE

The winner of this specimen will also receive a proof-quality electronic copy of “The Cambrian Fossils of Chengjiang, China” -- worth more than $130.

OVERVIEW: The Maotianshan shale is a lower Cambrian Konservat Lagerstätte named for Maotianshan Hill in Chengjiang County, Yunnan Province, China. More commonly, the extremely diverse assemblage of organisms are referred to as the Chengjiang biota for the multiple scattered fossil sites in Chengjiang, and more simply still, just Chengjiang. The Chengjiang fauna date to between 525 and 520 million years ago, a period the lies in about the middle of the early Cambrian epoch, at least some 10 million years earlier than the Burgess Shale. The Maotianshan shale is one of some forty Cambrian fossil locations worldwide exhibiting exquisite preservation of rarely preserved, non-mineralized soft tissue, comparable to the fossils of the Burgess Shale. The preservation of an extremely diverse faunal assemblage renders the Maotianshan shale the world’s most important locality for understanding the evolution of early multi-cellular life, and particularly the members of phylum Chordata, which includes all vertebrates. The Chengjiang fossils comprise the oldest diverse metazoan assemblage above the Proterozoic-Phanerozoic transition, and thus the fossil record’s best data source for understanding the apparently rapid diversification of life known as the Cambrian Explosion. (source: Wikipedia).

SPECIFICS: This anomalocaridid species is typically poorly preserved. Most individuals are represented only by the remains of the grasping appendages (like this specimen) of which about 30 isolated specimens are known. Some isolated grasping appendages are at least 14 cm long, which gives an idea of the overall large size of the animal (on the order of 1 meter long). The width of this species, including appendages, is estimated to be virtually the same as its length excluding the terminal furca. Amplectobelua symbrachiata is relatively wider than its Chengjiang associate Anomalocaris saron. The paired eyes are large. As in other anomalocaridids, most of the back of the animal is covered by fine transverse sets of lines, which according to one interpretation, represent long slender scales. The grasping appendages differ from those of Amplectobelua saron in having simple, unbranched spines of varying length on 13 podomeres. As in Anomalocaris saron, these projections are aligned in two rows. A spine on the third spiniferous podomere from the proximal end is notably long. The distal end of the grasping appendage has three well-developed, curved spines. The more posterior appendages are known virtually only from their large basal flap. It is not known whether there are elongated posterior appendages as in Anomalocaris, but the terminal pair of furcal rami look similar. The spiny grasping appendages indicate that this species was carnivorous like other anomalocaridids. The overall similarity in the grasping appendages between this species and Anomalocaris saron hints that the genera are closely related. The main known difference is that the spines of the appendages are simple in Amplectobelua but branched in Anomalocaris. Amplectobelua is known from a single species that is recorded only from the Chengjiang biota. (source: The Cambrian Fossils of Chengjiang, China)

AGE: Early Cambrian Epoch (525~520 million years ago)
FOUND: Cheng Jiang County, Yunnan Province, China
RARITY: about 30 specimens known
GENUS: Amplectobelua
SPECIES: sytnbrachiata (Hou, Bergstrom & Ahlberg, 1995)
SPECIMEN LENGTH: 2.25” long (5.7 cm)
MATRIX: 3.5” long x 2” wide x up to 0.5” thick
WEIGHT: 2 ounces net / 13 ounces shipping

SHIPPING EVERYWHERE: Please click the shipping calculator at the bottom of this page. The specimen can also be picked up in either Virginia or New Jersey immediately, or Tucson in February.

WHY BUY FROM EONS AGO COMPANY? HERE ARE JUST A FEW REASONS…

1. 100% feedback rating (half from repeat customers) with 15000+ transactions, 6200+ feedbacks, 2700+ unique customers
2. 100% commitment and honest dedication to customer delight; how else to consistently please so many eBayers?
3. I have been on eBay since the beginning and have sold more than $1.5 million worth of fossils here
4. Completely risk-free transaction with a USA dealer
5. Large, clear auction photos guarantee no disappointments upon receipt
6. Full lifetime authenticity guarantee including even shipping costs
7. Low cost same-day or next-day shipping
8. 30 day return policy for any reason
9. Super safe packaging and professional materials gets your fossil to you safely
10. Informative emails acknowledging payment receipt and shipping confirmation
11. Friendly service and fast responses to your questions

GUARANTEE OF AUTHENTICITY : All my items are 100% guaranteed authentic for as long as you own it. Your money will be immediately refunded (including shipping both ways) if the written opinion of a museum curator, auction house, accredited geologist or paleontologist, certified appraiser, or recognized expert in the field disputes my claim of authenticity. To keep your guarantee in force, you must keep a printout of this auction page.

30 DAY RETURN POLICY: If you decide within 30 days of auction end that you do not want an item purchased from me for any reason, then you can return it in as-sold condition for a refund of the closing bid price.

PAYMENT METHODS: We accept PayPal, e-checks (preferred), wire transfer, money order, postal cheque, and personal check (which require 14 days to clear)

INSTRUCTIONS TO THE AUCTION WINNER: Regardless of payment method, please click the "Pay Now" button that will appear at the top of this page after the auction ends. This lets you pay immediately by PayPal and also provides the address for those who wish to mail a payment. Please print the winning auction page now to create your GUARANTEE OF AUTHENTICITY. After payment I will delete the photos from my server to make room for new photos.

CLICK ON THE PHOTO TO SEE ADDITIONAL CLOSE-UPS