Meta basalt? All I see is turtle head.

[Zackarr]

I have this thing identified as volcanic metabasalt, or just metabasalt. I contacted the University of Minnesota geological department for them to kindly give me an idea of what it is. They did and I believe them. 

 

My initial thought was that it is a portion of a petrified turtle head. I see an eyelid with Scaring above and in front. The possible Nasal cavity on the back side. There is also the throat area at the lower back side, under what looks like a brain. 

 

I imagine a predator ripping this things head apart. The head floats down to the bottom of the volcanic seaway floor and is sediment covered, subducted into the earth, remineralized, and blown back up to the surface by volcanic pressure or tectonic plates... i may just be fantasizing here, but would like to know your thoughts and criticisms.

 

There are a bunch of coincidences visually between this rock and a turtle head.

 

This measures 8x5x5 inches.. 

[anonaddict]

Check this, should give a good explanation of the phenomenon you're experiencing pareidolia it happens to all of us, especially when starting out. after some years you gradually get a feel for what is and is not a fossil as you build experience

 

in general fossils are not carried up by any extreme events, but slow tectonic movements pressing the land upwards, alternatively the area could simply have been underwater back in the day. During the Devonian period, aptly named age of fishes, the oceans were >250 meters above current level

Edited Friday at 07:32 PM by anonaddict

[Fossildude19]

Yup. Sorry, but this is Pareidolia.  No fossil of any kind here.

[shark57]

Turtle "heads" generally don't fossilize (petrify is not really an accurate term here). The skull can fossilize. It would be comprised of fairly thin bone with a significant hollow area in the middle. It would also have large openings for the eye sockets and visible sutures where the various skull bones fuse. This specimen has none of these characteristics and shows no bone texture or bone morphology. It is just an interestingly shaped rock.

[Fin Lover]

Here's a partial sea turtle skull I found.  The bottom jaw is missing, but you can see the bone, eye sockets, etc.

[Zackarr]

Awesome! Thank you for your knowledge!