Massive Arizona Petrified Wood Slab - Board Cut

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Fine Antiquities | Ethnographica | Fine Art

By Artemis Gallery

May 19, 2022

Set Reminder 2022-05-19 10:00:00 2022-05-19 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Fine Antiquities | Ethnographica | Fine Art https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/fine-antiquities-ethnographica-fine-art-9350
Featuring a very special collection of Fine Art from the Hollywood Hills, including Picasso & Rookwood ceramics! Also included are many fine examples of classical antiquities, ancient, and ethnographic art from cultures encompassing the globe. Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com

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• Lot Description
  North America, Southwestern United States, Arizona, Late Triassic, ca. 225 million years ago. A massive and gorgeous slab of fossilized or petrified tree trunk sliced lengthwise like a plank, then highly polished on the obverse to showcase the amazing colors. Millions of years ago this tree died, but the wood was preserved through fossilization and the organic material was replaced by stone- the vibrant structures made of quartz and agate. The natural knots and striations of the wood are present - the gaps infilled with quartzite banding. These colors are otherworldly and drastically different than what the original wood must have been, and this slab has hues that look like they were taken from Jupiter or Saturn: warm hues of red and maroon, purple, ochre yellow, with creamy white and lilac blue striations and swirls throughout. The flat face is sealed to protect the surface and this slab could be mounted as a tabletop! Size: 46.5" L x 1.75" W x 23.5" H (118.1 cm x 4.4 cm x 59.7 cm)
  
  Fossilized trees from this time period come from the Chinle Formation of the southwestern USA, and the beautiful colors found in this formation - exemplified by the colors of this fossilized tree - give the Painted Desert of Arizona its name. During the Late Triassic, because of plate tectonics, this area was near the equator on the supercontinent Pangaea, with a humid, sub-tropical climate. It was a floodplain below mountains to its south and a sea to its west; as a result, massive trees washed down from the mountains and came to rest in sediments that preserved them and fossilized them. The petrification process involves the rapid burial of the tree or pieces under sediment which prevents the usual decay. Flooding and volcanic activity are usually responsible for creating the layers of sand, silt, and ash needed to create the right types and amount of sediment. Mineralized water can then permeate through the wood, coating cell walls and filling the intercellular cavities which then fossilizes into stone. The detailed preservation of the wood, including knots, rings, and bark, are possible because the organic wood molecules become coated and surrounded with smaller silica molecules. Nine different species of tree have been identified in the fossilized deposits in the region; this example may be Araucarioxylon parazonium, an extinct conifer tree (and the state fossil of Arizona), which is often found. Fascinatingly, the Ancestral Puebloan people who lived in the region approximately one thousand years ago used petrified wood for making tools and even building houses!
  
  Provenance: private Berthoud, Colorado, USA collection
  
  All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
  
  A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
  
  PLEASE NOTE: Due to recent increases of shipments being seized by Australian & German customs (even for items with pre-UNESCO provenance), we will no longer ship most antiquities and ancient Chinese art to Australia & Germany. For categories of items that are acceptable to ship to Australia or Germany, please contact us directly or work with your local customs brokerage firm.
  
  Display stands not described as included/custom in the item description are for photography purposes only and will not be included with the item upon shipping.
  
  #170383

  Condition

  Professionally prepared and polished. Stable fissures throughout from fossilization process, and minor infill with sealant to gaps on peripheries. One face is highly polished and covered in a clear fixative coating and the verso is covered in an opaque protective sealant to reinforce the piece.
• Shipping Info

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