Potamon Crab Fossil (I)- Denizli Basin | River Walkers Minerals

A cavern-like travertine chamber housing an well-preserved Potamon freshwater crab from the Denizli Basin of southwestern Turkey. This is one of the largest pieces of the group— substantial in weight and full of detail.

The crab rests naturally against the travertine wall, its carapace fully exposed and surrounded by scattered limb segments, exactly as it was entombed during mineral deposition. The travertine has grown around the crab in thick botryoidal textures. Under UV light, both the crab and interior mineral coatings glow strongly, and the piece retains a soft afterglow (phosphorescence) when the light is removed— a beautiful added effect unique to these Denizli travertine fossils.

These deposits formed in spring and river environments during the Pleistocene era (approx 400,000 years old). Potamon itself is a genus of freshwater crab still found around the eastern Mediterranean today, making this fossil a direct link between past and present ecosystems.

This specimen has no repairs or added material. 

Details:

• Species: Potamon sp. (freshwater crab)
• Matrix: Travertine
• Locality: Denizli Basin, southwestern Turkey
• Age: Pleistocene era (approx 400,000 years old)
• Dimensions: 7.2 x 7 in (approx. 18.3 x 17.8 cm)
• Weight: 4.26 lbs (1.93 kg)