Petrified wood or petrified rock refers to stone or rock. It means wood that has turned into a rock or a stone. It is a type of fossilized wood that has formed from the remains of terrestrial vegetation. The term petrified that the wood underwent the process of petrification which involves the process where trees turn into stones due to mineralization. This can be understood with the example of Permineralization. In order to learn about Petrified wood, you need to know about various petrified wood examples. Read the article to learn about Petrified woods and other facts related to it.
1. What Type of Rock is Petrified Wood?
Petrified wood is basically a fossil type of rock. This is a fossil since it is formed by the sedimentation of any plant material and protects from decaying because of oxygen and organisms. After this the groundwater, which is rich in dissolved solids flows through that sediment and replaces the actual plant with silica, calcite, and pyrite, forming a rock. The very result of a fossil of the petrified wood includes bark, wood, and other cell structures within it. (See What does Schist Look Like?)
2. What is Petrified Wood Called?
Petrified wood is generally known as Fossil wood. It is known as petrified wood because the wood undergoes the process of petrification. It becomes a fossil as the tree or a plant gets sedimented and then the plant is protected from decaying naturally due to oxygen and other organisms. The groundwater which involves high levels of dissolved solids gets through that sediment and provides the sediment with various minerals such as silica, calcite, and pyrite. This process results in the formation of a Fossil wood rock, known as petrified wood. You would understand this with the help of various petrified wood examples.
3. Is Petrified Wood an Examples of Permineralization?
Yes, petrified wood is an example of Permineralization. Before moving into the reason behind this, you need to learn what is meant by Permineralization. Let’s start from the beginning with fossilization. In simpler terms, the process which involves dead organisms such as animals and plants, etc turning into fossils, is known as fossilization. Fossilisation is a lengthy process and has various methods. One such method is Permineralization.
In permineralization, a bone, wood fragment, or shell when buried under sediment undergoes mineral-rich water where the minerals are deposited in the empty spaces of wood fragments, which results in the wood turning into a fossil. This fossil is then known as petrified wood and this is an example of Permineralization. Learn What is the Study of Fossils Called?
4. What are Petrified Wood Examples?
There are no such types of petrified wood examples as it is one of its own kind. Because of this, there are no such petrified wood examples on the basis of its formation or type. However, various petrified wood has their own distinct nature as they involve different composition of minerals. Among all, the most prominent are the minerals such as silica, pyrite, and calcite.
5. Where is the Most Petrified Wood Found?
Petrified wood or fossils are mostly found in the following regions:
- Argentina
- Australia
- Belgium
- Brazil
- Canada
- China
- Germany
- Ecuador
- Egypt
- Greece
- Indonesia
- Italy
- Libya
- Czech Republic
- India
- Madagascar
- New Zealand
- Ukraine
- United Kingdom
- The United States
- Arizona
- California
In various countries, National Parks prevent these petrified woods from being removed which had led the stone forests to be made a world heritage site.
6. How do You Identify Petrified Wood?
In order to identify petrified wood, you need to observe a wood specimen. You need to observe the following qualities of the very wood specimen:
- The petrified wood samples carry the qualities of smooth edges and natural colors.
- The very specimen would lack barks and white-colored portions can be clearly seen on the wood-dried sap.
- Growth rings and wood or bark patterns would be visible.
- You need to check if the wood sample consists of a certain level of transparency, by observing how much light can pass through it.
7. What is the Most Common Petrified Wood?
The wood that has been mixed up with infilled Chalcedony is the most common petrified wood. This wood is also known as agatized wood. There are various other petrified wood examples. Another type of petrified wood that is quite common is when the wood is infilled with opal making it an Opalized wood. These woods are examples of Permineralization. Agatized wood is perhaps the most common petrified wood. (See What are Some Yellow Stones?)
8. What is the Rarest Color of Petrified Wood?
Petrified wood such as agatized wood or Opalized wood and others has a wide range of colors. Although petrified wood generally comes in a wide variety of colors, the green color is the rarest. The green color forms because of the plant, which shows how well-preserved the plant is. A petrified wood usually gives a light purple fluorescence along with vivid green color. The colors are also important to identify petrified wood.
9. What is the Oldest Piece of Petrified Wood?
The oldest piece of petrified wood is known as Callixylon which occurs in the Devonian-age Woodford Shale, located in the Arbuckle Mountains, near Ada. The East Central University of Ada has an excellent specimen of this wood at its entrance. Check out How much does a Horseshoe Weigh?
10. What are Petrified Fossils Examples?
Here are various petrified fossils examples:
- Whale bones are petrified by calcite.
- Sand Dollars that are petrified by iron pyrite crystals.
- Other fossils involve dinosaur eggs and various ancient dung that are preserved as stones.
We may conclude with the fact that petrified wood is formed when the wood within a long period of time gets sedimented and is washed with rich-mineral waters. The minerals then get sedimented into the very wood forming a petrified wood. It doesn’t have a certain type but is formed with different minerals such as calcite, iron pyrite crystals, and many more. These are very rare nowadays and the places where you may find petrified woods have been declared heritage sites. (Also read What are Some Valuable Kinds of Arrowheads?)
