fossil
Crinoid Stem Fossil
Crinoidea (Class) - Calcium Carbonate (CaCO3)
Hardness 3 (calcite composition), greyish-tan color, dull to vitreous luster, cylindrical segment with a central canal (lumen).
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Physical properties
Hardness 3 (calcite composition), greyish-tan color, dull to vitreous luster, cylindrical segment with a central canal (lumen).
Formation & geological history
Formed from the disarticulated calcite columnals of marine echinoderms (sea lilies) that lived on ancient sea floors, typically from the Ordovician to Permian periods.
Uses & applications
Popular for educational collections, fossil hunting, and occasionally fashioned into beads or traditional folk jewelry ('Indian beads' or 'St. Cuthbert's beads').
Geological facts
Crinoids are marine animals related to starfish and sea urchins, not plants, despite often being called 'sea lilies'. Disarticulated stem segments are among the most common Paleozoic fossils.
Field identification & locations
Identified by its distinctive cylindrical wheel-like or ring-like shape, often featuring a star-shaped or round hole in the center. Found in limestone deposits worldwide.
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Order Rugosa (extinct)
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