I've got a 'heart of stone'.
field notes 2018Posted by Vince Simmonds Fri, March 30, 2018 14:32:46This echinoid was recovered from the spoil heap of a prehistoric ditch being excavated in Sherborne, Dorset recently.
Micraster has a characteristic heart-shaped test, covered in small bosses and usually found in strata of Cretaceous age. Interestingly, the underlying geology at the Sherborne site is Jurassic, this poses a question: does the 'heart of stone' represent a placed deposit? Unfortunately, it was found 'out of context' so one cannot be certain.