An incredible geologic treasure over a BILLION years in the making. The amazing Marra Mamba Formation of Western Australia is an iron-rich sedimentary unit dated at approximately 2.5 billion years old!
Tiger Iron consist of the earliest known fossilized organisms and the oldest known rocks on Earth! The alternating layers consist of iron oxide (metallics and reds) and microcrystalline silica in the form of Tiger Eye (golds).
Formed during the Archean Eon, (Archean from the greek meaning “beginning” or “origin” for the first start of life), it is believed that the Earth resembled a water world, with most of the continental crust hiding under a very deep ocean. The atmosphere lacked free oxygen, so when the first micro-organisms (cyanobacteria) photosynthesized, it greatly increased the oxygen content in the oceans. Banded Tiger Iron slabs are believed to be derived in part from the remains of these micro-organisms.
As dissolved iron and silicon rose from depths in the ocean, it interacted with the more oxygen-rich water (produced from the cyanobacteria photosynthesizing) to combine and make insoluble iron oxides and silica, which came out of solution as a fine-grained sediment. As these sediments fell to the sea floor, it created accumulating layers of iron oxide and silica-rich sediments in alternating bands on the ocean floor. This process repeated for nearly a billion years and can be seen in all its geologic glory in slabs like this!
The rock formation has been cut with one side polished to a high gloss finish with the top and sides left in their natural state.
Approx. 5.25" L x 3.75" H x .5" Deep
Need a display stand?
If you would like a clear acrylic stand to display your specimen upright with a slight tilt forward, we recommend adding Stand C1 to your cart.
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