3.1" Trilobite Mortality Plate Fossil Devonian Age 400 Million Years Old COA

Location: Morocco

Weight: 11.3 Ounces 

Dimensions: 3.1 Inches Long, 2.9 Inches Wide, 1.4 Inches Thick (Matrix) 

Comes with a Certificate of Authenticity.

The item pictured is the one you will receive.

Trilobites are extinct marine arthropods classified within the class Trilobita. They first appeared approximately 521 million years ago during the Early Cambrian and quickly became one of the most successful early life forms in Earth’s oceans. For over 270 million years, trilobites thrived across diverse marine habitats before disappearing in the mass extinction at the end of the Permian period.

Their name means “three-lobed,” referring to the distinctive longitudinal division of their bodies into a central axial lobe and two pleural lobes. Trilobites possessed a hard calcified exoskeleton, which protected them and contributed to their remarkable fossil preservation.

The body was divided into three main sections: the cephalon (head), thorax (segmented midsection), and pygidium (tail). Many species had compound eyes made of calcite lenses—an advanced feature for early arthropods. Some trilobites could roll into a defensive ball, similar to modern pill bugs.

Because trilobites evolved rapidly and existed for such a long span of geological time, their fossils serve as important index fossils used to date Paleozoic rock formations worldwide.

Please be aware of the nature of fossils:

Being buried under tons of pressure for millions of years makes fossils rough. No fossil emerges perfect; most are restored or altered to improve presentation. Moroccan workers are professional in unearthing and preserving treasures, though surface cracks are visible—part of their natural beauty, not defects.