The word 'Fossil' is derived from the Latin word fossus, which literally means "having been dug up". Fossilization is a rare occurrence because most of the organic components that make up plants and animals tend to decompose relatively quickly following death. In order for an organism to become fossilized, the remains need to be covered up by sediment as soon as possible.
Petrified Organic Material
petrification can occur when an organism (plant or animal) comes to rest in an anoxic (oxygen-free) environment such as at the bottom of a lake or on the sea-bed. After petrification, the material takes on the physical properties of a rock-like cryptocrystalline mineral.
At the end of the Cretaceous period around 65 million years ago, dinosaurs suffered a sudden and catastrophic extinction due to a major climatic event brought on by a possible comet or meteor strike. This event ended the dinosaur's dominance on land.
Fossilized Dinosaur Bone Earrings (left) and Fossilized Ivory (right) Earrings by Jeff & Susan Wise
Dinosaurs were vertebrate animals that dominated the terrestrial ecosystem for over 160 million years, first appearing approximately 230 million years ago. An animal's bones and skeletal structure are made through a process called "endochondral ossification," which is one of two types of bone formation (ossification), and is the process responsible for much of the bone growth in vertebrate skeletons.
Fossilized and/or petrified plants, ivory tusks, and seashells also make beautiful selections in contemporary jewelry design. Artists like Michael Zobel, Carolyn Morris Bach, and Jeff & Susan Wise use fossilized materials as a textural contrast to semiprecious gemstones.
Fossilized Dinosaur Bone used in jewelry is a very soft material, with a hardness of only 3 on the Mohs scale.
Chemical composition: CaCO3
Semi-Precious Stones