La Voulte-sur-Rhône Lagerstätte

Located in the Ardèche region, this Jurassic formation contains marine fossils preserved in fine detail within silty shale and ferruginous limestone layers.

French paleontologists discovered the first crustacean and fish fossils in nodules during the 19th century iron mining operations at this location.

The site contributes to scientific understanding of marine ecosystems from 165 million years ago through the preservation of ancient octopuses and sea spiders.

The formation extends about 100 meters in thickness and contains multiple quarries near La Boissine, west of La Voulte-sur-Rhône village.

This location represents one of three worldwide sites where extensive pyritization of soft tissues enables the study of early fossil mineralization stages.

Location: Rhône-Alpes

GPS coordinates: 44.79849,4.76321

Latest update: June 23, 2025 09:50