2023-10-27 20:30:03
News JVTech Straight out of Jurassic Park, this 25 million year old amber crystal hides many secrets
Published on 10/27/2023 at 10:30 p.m.
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A piece of amber sold for more than $6,000.
A priceless piece dating back over 25 million years
Within a fragment of crystalline amber, a small praying mantis is present, remaining motionless for eternity. This sample, measuring just over two centimeters in height, was sold at an auction organized by Heritage Auctions for the sum of $6,000 in 2016. This piece of amber of rare purity, originating from the Dominican Republic, offers a unique vision of an ancient praying mantis. The amber in question finds its origins in Hymenaea protera, a prehistoric leguminous tree that is now extinct. The majority of amber discovered in Central and South America comes from the resin of this tree.
Photo credit: Heritage Auctions
Heritage Auctions has dated this sample to the Oligocene period, placing it in an age range between 23 and 33.9 million years ago. This is a crucial period marking the transition from the archaic Eocene to the more modern ecosystems of the Miocene period, which extended until regarding 5 million years ago. Surprisingly, the praying mantis itself does not appear to differ significantly from the one we know today.
John Hammond’s cane for real?
Currently, there are more than 2,400 species of praying mantis, mainly found in tropical climates. However, the oldest praying mantis fossils, dating back 135 million years, come from a much colder region: Siberia. Some ancient fossils even depict praying mantises with spines on their front legs, like modern mantises. The individual who acquired this sample of amber has truly acquired a singular object from an evolutionary historical point of view.
The parallel between Jurassic Park and this precious piece of amber is striking, as both evoke the fascination with the prehistoric past and the preservation of ancient life in a frozen state. In Steven Spielberg’s film, John Hammond, the park’s creator, uses technology to bring dinosaurs that have been extinct for millions of years back to life. Likewise, the amber enclosing the prehistoric praying mantis offers a window into the past, capturing a creature between 23 and 33.9 million years old in an impressive state of preservation.
This amber fragment is strongly reminiscent of John Hammond’s iconic cane, symbolizing his desire to revive prehistoric species. Although this discovery does not literally bring regarding a resurrection of the past, it offers valuable insight into prehistoric life. She reminds us that nature constitutes the greatest museum in the history of the Earth and that, at times, its treasures prove as breathtaking, if not more, than fiction.
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