Where to get fossils in Ireland

Slow Motion

Hi guys, I have always been facinated by fossils and have a few nice ones. However I bought them in the Smithsonian in Washington, a friend of mine has told me his son wants some for Christmas but I have absolutely no idea where I could buy some in Ireland. I did a quick google and the first hit was this place:p So any ideas where this Old Fossil could lay his hands on some even older ones?

Thanks, each reply gets you a free beer in Yore Mas!;)

Galvasean

Not sure about buying direct in Ireland but you can find a lot of stuff on Ebay, for example this megalodon tooth if you have €100 to drop within the hour!
http://cgi.ebay.ie/B-J-F-Good-Quality-Fossil-Megalodon-Shark-Tooth_W0QQitemZ350137684549QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Collectables_RocksFossils_Minerals_EH?hash=item350137684549&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1294%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318
I'm sure it will resurface again (no bids so far) if it doesn't sell, hopefully at a lower price.

Ebay seems to be the best way to go in general, just as alwas be on the look out for frauds.


edit:
Oh wow, something for my walking stick!

http://cgi.ebay.ie/FOSSILIZED-INSECT-IN-AMBER-TRUE-MIDGE-B64_W0QQitemZ220329342474QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Collectables_RocksFossils_Minerals_EH?hash=item220329342474&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1294%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318

Slow Motion

Galvasean wrote: »

Not sure about buying direct in Ireland but you can find a lot of stuff on Ebay, for example this megalodon tooth if you have €100 to drop within the hour!
http://cgi.ebay.ie/B-J-F-Good-Quality-Fossil-Megalodon-Shark-Tooth_W0QQitemZ350137684549QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Collectables_RocksFossils_Minerals_EH?hash=item350137684549&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1294%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318
I'm sure it will resurface again (no bids so far) if it doesn't sell, hopefully at a lower price.

Ebay seems to be the best way to go in general, just as alwas be on the look out for frauds.


edit:
Oh wow, something for my walking stick!

http://cgi.ebay.ie/FOSSILIZED-INSECT-IN-AMBER-TRUE-MIDGE-B64_W0QQitemZ220329342474QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Collectables_RocksFossils_Minerals_EH?hash=item220329342474&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1294%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318

Cheers guvnor, I'm getting the impression ebay is the only game in this country really, pity I love to browse real shops for this kind of stuff!

majikthise

Just to note, there is a place called The Rock Shop in Liscannor that sells fossils. They've a website here:

http://www.therockshop.ie/

I was in it recently, and picked up a little bag with a couple of fossils for a couple of euro. They had more expensive stuff too, but I frankly don't know enough to be able to tell if it that stuff was worth the money or if it was genuine material.

Just a general question, because any of the fossils I have I've typically bought in places like the gift shop in the London Natural History Museum - are those fossils generally genuine? I mean, I've a nice little ammonite, but I do wonder if its actually a fossil or just a moulding - given that I picked it out of a big bin full of them.

Galvasean

majikthise wrote: »

Just a general question, because any of the fossils I have I've typically bought in places like the gift shop in the London Natural History Museum - are those fossils generally genuine? I mean, I've a nice little ammonite, but I do wonder if its actually a fossil or just a moulding - given that I picked it out of a big bin full of them.

If you got them in the LNHM then they are most likely genuine. Things like ammonites (among other things like many kinds of shark tooth and 'junk' dinosaur bone fragments) are so common they are often referred to as 'souvenirosaurus'. Since they are so common and well studied they arent worth being kept in the museums' research collections as they can offer no new information to science. Their only real use is for souvenirs.