Ammonite (OUMNH PAL-J.016523)

3D Model

Lyme Regis, Dorset, England. Lower Jurassic. (~200 million years old).

This beautifully preserved ammonite (Asteroceras obtusum) is synonymous with the Jurassic coast of England. Locals sold these ‘snake stones’ to visitors, with the most famous seller of fossil curios being Mary Anning. She trawled the beach and searched the cliffs in Lyme Regis with her dog Tray, hoping for important fossil finds that could be sold to private collectors or museums.

On her fossil hunting trips, Mary was frequently accompanied by her friend Charlotte Murchison. Though uncommon in Victorian England, Charlotte studied science and geology and is credited with shaping her husband Roderick’s career as a geologist. Through her talent for drawing fossils and geological landscapes, Charlotte made valuable contributions to the field of palaeontology and mineralogist James Sowerby named Ammonites murchisonae after her.

OUMNH PAL- J.016523 Collections Online: https://oumnh.ox.ac.uk/collections-online#/item/oum-catalogue-667976