COLLECTIONS:
our fossils

FOSSILS

Our collection of fossils essentially originates from the Plana de Vic.

When we talk about ‘fossils’, we are referring to the remains of animals and plants that lived in previous geological eras that, on dying, became encrusted in the rocks formed by the sediments that were being laid down at the time.

In the sedimentary rocks of marine origin in the Plana de Vic we find fossils that are representative of the main marine habitats that existed during the Eocene (Tertiary Period).

OTHER TYPES OF FOSSILS

Trace fossils or ichnofossils are the marks and trails left by organisms that have been preserved in the sedimentary rocks. They include footprints, trails and claw marks, which have been ‘engraved’ on the rocks and which are now useful for studying the behaviour and habits of fossil creatures.

However unlikely it may seem, the merest mark – organic or physical – may be preserved on the soft surface of a sediment. This occurred near Sant Julià Sassorba (Osona) around 57 million years ago, where the tracks and trails of many arthropods (e.g. crabs), other invertebrates and reptiles have been found. Occasionally, the physical traces of moving water are fossilized as beaches, ripple marks or as the traces of the impact of drips or gases.