Description
Witchellia cf. glauca Ammonite Fossil – Middle Jurassic, Dorset, UK
This genuine Witchellia cf. glauca ammonite fossil is a carefully chosen specimen from the Inferior Oolite Group at Sandford Lane Quarry, Sherborne, North Dorset, UK. Dating to the Middle Jurassic Period, Bajocian Stage, Laeviuscula Subzone, this fossil represents an attractive and scientifically interesting British Jurassic ammonite from a classic inland Dorset locality. The photograph shows the actual specimen you will receive, making this a desirable piece for fossil collectors, natural history enthusiasts, geology students, educational displays, and anyone interested in authentic UK Jurassic fossils.
Genuine Fossil with Certificate of Authenticity
This fossil is a genuine specimen and includes a Certificate of Authenticity lifetime guarantee generic card. It has been selected as an individual natural history specimen, with full sizing shown in the photo. The fossil is supplied exactly as pictured, allowing buyers to view the preservation, shell form, surface detail, natural matrix, and overall character of the actual ammonite being offered.
Species and Fossil Type
Witchellia cf. glauca is an ammonite, an extinct marine cephalopod related to modern squid, cuttlefish, and nautilus. Ammonites are among the most recognisable fossils of the Jurassic Period and are highly valued for their coiled shells, ornamental ribbing, and importance in dating sedimentary rock layers. The abbreviation “cf.” means the specimen compares closely with Witchellia glauca, while allowing for careful identification where preservation, natural variation, or incomplete diagnostic features may affect certainty.
The genus Witchellia is especially associated with the Middle Jurassic Bajocian and is a valued component of classic Inferior Oolite ammonite faunas. Witchellia ammonites typically display a planispiral coiled shell, with compressed whorls and ribbing that may vary through growth stages. In life, the animal would have occupied the outer body chamber, while the inner chambers helped regulate buoyancy in the warm Jurassic sea.
Geology and Age
This specimen comes from the Inferior Oolite Group, a well-known Middle Jurassic rock sequence found across parts of southern and western England. The Inferior Oolite was deposited during the Bajocian Stage, around 170 million years ago, when much of what is now Dorset lay beneath a shallow marine environment. These ancient seas supported a rich ecosystem of ammonites, bivalves, brachiopods, gastropods, echinoids, crinoids, and other marine invertebrates.
The Laeviuscula Subzone places this ammonite within an important Bajocian biostratigraphic interval. Ammonites are particularly useful as index fossils because they evolved rapidly and were widely distributed in Jurassic seas. Specimens from defined zones and subzones are therefore of special interest to collectors and students of palaeontology, as they help link the fossil to a precise part of the Middle Jurassic succession.
Locality – Sandford Lane Quarry, Sherborne, North Dorset
Sandford Lane Quarry, near Sherborne in North Dorset, is part of an inland fossil-bearing region associated with the Inferior Oolite Group. While Dorset is internationally famous for its Jurassic Coast, inland localities around Sherborne preserve an important and different chapter of the county’s Jurassic history. These deposits represent Middle Jurassic marine conditions, younger than many of the famous Lower Jurassic coastal fossil beds around Lyme Regis and Charmouth.
The Sandford Lane Quarry locality gives this ammonite excellent provenance and strong regional interest. Fossils from named localities are especially collectable because they preserve a clear connection to their original geological setting. For collectors of Dorset fossils, British ammonites, Sherborne-area specimens, Inferior Oolite fossils, and Bajocian cephalopods, this specimen offers both display appeal and geological significance.
Scientific and Collectable Interest
This Witchellia cf. glauca ammonite is a collectable British Jurassic fossil with strong palaeontological appeal. Its combination of genus, comparative species identification, Inferior Oolite Group provenance, Bajocian age, Laeviuscula Subzone association, and named North Dorset quarry locality makes it suitable for a specialist fossil collection, natural history cabinet, educational geology set, museum-style display, or thoughtful gift for a fossil enthusiast.
Ammonites remain one of the most popular fossil groups because they combine natural beauty with genuine scientific value. This specimen represents an animal that once lived in the warm Jurassic seas covering what is now Dorset, offering a tangible connection to an ancient marine world preserved in stone for millions of years.
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