Fossil or rock?

[BobGuy]

Hello,

First time posting to this forum. I was out hunting for NA artifacts and found this. To me it looks like a tree fossil but I really don't know. THe pattern of the circles is what is making me believe that it was something organic. The rock appears to be some kind of sandstone.

I appreciate any insight! Thanks for looking!

 

[DDancer]

It does appear to be sandstone. The patterning reminds me of either a coral or palm tree. I lean towards coral due to the size of the dimples and the peeks in the center. Could be a mold of either of those and such molds of ancient flora/fauna do pop up from time to time. One way to check is to polish the back or cut a small slab and see if there is additional patterning.
Additional thought is that it may be a very old piece of coral though they dont typically survive very well out in the field.

 

[BobGuy]

So if there is patterning on the inside then it's a fossil and if not then it's an imprint? It's possible for a fossil to be made of sandstone?

It would make sense if it's coral because this whole areas was a shallow sea and I find lots of other smaller marine fossils..

 

[DDancer]

Imprints are considered fossils as well Alot of the time the patterning will be apparent inside but not always. Patterning is a strong indication however the difference between an imprint and a fossil is often determined by the type of stone/minerals that form them. Many minerals exhibit patterning that is almost organic looking but they are not fossils. Sandstone and lime stone have few minerals that exhibit any form of organic patterning but can take imprints rather well.
A fun thought : All fossils, except amber and a few other types of fossil, can be considered imprints of ancient life as their remains were substituted over time by minerals in their environment. A true imprint is like a picture, a true fossil is like a sculpture.

 

[dts52]

IMVHO, old piece of coral.
HH
dts