Stone Fossilized Fish, Based

A small fish, caught in the act of swimming, and the act has lasted fifty million years.

This fossilized fish, mounted on a base, is Diplomystus dentatus from Wyoming, United States, and dates to the Eocene, about 51 million years ago, in stone. Fossil fish from the ancient lake beds of southwestern Wyoming are among the most familiar in the world, often split from layers of fine limestone. The fish here is a dark chocolate brown, with a forked tail, a row of fine fin rays and a long backbone. A shallow trough in the tan stone outlines it. The slab is irregular and rough at the edges, and rests on a black metal stand. It is 14 inches wide, 1.25 deep and 12.5 high.

It has held the pose longer than anyone could ask.