2.5" Glyptodon Fossil Osteoderm Spike Scute Plate Bony Armor Pleistocene Uruguay COA

Location: Uruguay

Weight: 1.2 Ounces 

Dimension: 2.5 Inches Long, 1.5 Inches Wide, 1 Inch Thick

Comes with a Certificate of Authenticity.

The item pictured is the one you will receive.

This is a real Fossil.

Glyptodon is a genus of extinct giant mammals related to modern armadillos and found as fossils in deposits in North and South America dating from the Pliocene and Pleistocene epochs (5.3 million to 11,700 years ago). Glyptodon and its close relatives, the glyptodonts, were encased from head to tail in thick, protective armor resembling in shape the shell of a turtle but composed of bony plates much like the covering of an armadillo. The body shell alone was as long as 1.5 meters (5 feet). The tail, also clad in armor, could serve as a lethal club; indeed, in some relatives of Glyptodon, the tip of the tail was a knob of bone that was sometimes spiked. Glyptodonts ate almost anything—plants, carrion, or insects.

If you look closely at Glyptodon, you might think it’s a strange hybrid of a turtle, a beaver, and an armadillo. In reality, this megafauna mammal was only a distant relative of the armadillo and not related to turtles or beavers.

One of the most fascinating facts about Glyptodon is its size—it was roughly the same as a Volkswagen Beetle, measuring about 10 feet long and weighing around a ton. Its short legs and massive armored dome made it nearly impossible for predators to attack. However, if a predator managed to flip it over, the soft underbelly would have been vulnerable.

Glyptodon went extinct around 10,000 years ago, just before the end of the last Ice Age. While climate change played a role, humans likely contributed as well. Early South American settlers prized its meat and fur, and there is evidence that its sturdy shell may have even been used as shelter against the cold.