Carboniferous Fossil Seed Coal Measures UK Specimen Westphalian Houghton Colliery County Durham Genuine COA Included

Description

Genuine Carboniferous Fossil Seed – Rare Westphalian Coal Measures Specimen

Offered here is an authentic Carboniferous fossil seed specimen, preserved within the famous Westphalian Coal Measures of northern England. Fossil seeds are a particularly fascinating and less commonly encountered type of plant fossil, representing the reproductive structures of prehistoric vegetation that flourished more than 300 million years ago.

This specimen originates from Houghton Colliery, Houghton-le-Spring, County Durham, UK, a classic historic Coal Measures locality well known for producing significant Carboniferous plant fossils. The fossil is a carefully selected piece, chosen for its quality, collectability, and strong display character. The listing photographs show the exact specimen you will receive, with full sizing details clearly visible in the images provided.

Included with the fossil is a Certificate of Authenticity with lifetime guarantee, supplied as a generic authenticity card to permanently accompany this genuine specimen.

Geological Age and Formation – Westphalian Coal Measures

This fossil seed dates to the Westphalian Stage of the late Carboniferous Period, approximately 310–315 million years old. During this remarkable time, Britain lay near the equator and was covered in vast tropical wetlands. Dense coal swamp forests thrived across the landscape, creating one of the richest plant ecosystems in Earth’s history.

The Coal Measures were deposited in swampy delta plains, river flood basins, and waterlogged lowland environments. Thick accumulations of plant material were rapidly buried beneath fine silts and mudstones. Oxygen-poor conditions slowed decay, allowing delicate structures such as seeds and cones to fossilise rather than decompose.

Over millions of years, these plant-rich sediments transformed into the coal seams that later became central to Britain’s industrial heritage.

Fossil Type – Ancient Seed from Prehistoric Coal Forest Plants

Fossil seeds from the Carboniferous hold special importance because they document one of the earliest major developments in plant evolution: the rise of seed-based reproduction.

During the late Carboniferous, early seed plants such as seed ferns and primitive gymnosperm-like groups diversified throughout the swamp forests. Seeds offered these plants a reproductive advantage over spore-only plants, representing a key step toward the dominance of seed plants in later geological periods.

Unlike fossil leaves or stems, seeds are less frequently preserved, making genuine Carboniferous fossil seed specimens relatively uncommon and highly desirable among collectors.

Morphology and Preservation Features

This specimen preserves the natural compact form of an ancient fossilised seed within its original Coal Measures matrix. Such fossils are often preserved as carbonised compressions or mineralised structures within shale, sometimes displaying subtle surface texture and shape that reflect their biological origin.

Fossil seeds provide a rare and direct connection to the reproductive biology of prehistoric plants, capturing an intimate part of the life cycle of coal swamp vegetation frozen in deep time.

This makes the specimen not only scientifically intriguing but also a striking and unusual display fossil.

Locality – Houghton Colliery, County Durham, England

Houghton Colliery is one of County Durham’s historic coal mining sites, well known among palaeobotanists and collectors for yielding classic Westphalian plant fossils. Specimens from this locality are increasingly scarce today as traditional coal exposures decline, adding provenance value and rarity to this fossil seed.

Owning a fossil from this region connects directly to Britain’s globally significant Carboniferous coalfield history.

Authenticity, Display and Collecting

This is a 100% genuine Carboniferous fossil seed specimen, ideal for:

• Fossil and mineral collectors
• Carboniferous coal forest enthusiasts
• Educational geology and natural history displays
• Unique prehistoric gifts and conversation pieces

A rare opportunity to own an authentic fossil reproductive structure from Britain’s ancient tropical coal swamps, preserved for over 300 million years and supplied with a lifetime Certificate of Authenticity.