Rock Review: Turitella Agate

Turitella Agate is a fossil gem. The creastures fossilized in Turitella agate are called Elimia tenera (erroneously considered Turritella) shells. Elimia tenera are spiral marine snails having elongated, spiral shells composed of many whorls.

A good cut of Turitella agate features a bounty of these beautiful shell cross sections. these gorgeous stones come from the Green River Formation in southwestern Wyoming, Northeastern Utah, and Northern Colorado. The material is found in layers deposited in ancient lakebeds formed over 40 million years ago.

The coloration is typically a mixture of black and brown tones with the fossilezed shell patterns appearing in shades of pearly white. to beige. Because of the fossil nature of the stone, these gems are considered to carry a memory and help the wearer with memory and looking into the past.