Fossil Forest

Fossil Forest

In the town of Rillo de Gallothere is one of the jewels of the Molina-Alto Tajo GeoparkThis is an area where the following have been found fossil conifer trunks from the Primary Erawhich represents a perfect cross-section in which the development of the planet can be studied geologically.

The way in which this small fossil forest was formed has its explanation. A few years ago 300 million yearsA volcanic eruption caused an immense rain of ashes, which buried this forest, now turned into stone, something similar to what happened in Pompeii with Vesuvius, but in this case, the fossilised material is wood.

The volcanic ash from the eruption had a high silica content and the fluids that circulated through it were poor in oxygen, so the organic matter that made up the plants did not oxidise, these conditions were maintained long enough for a replacement, at the molecular level, of the organic matter in the tissues of these trees by a silica mineral called opal to occur, slowly enough for the microscopic details of the wood to be preserved, which is why they are known as "opal".xylophallus".

This xylopal is a very hard mineral, so when the volcanic levels that cover them are eroded, they are exhumed, forming an amazing deposit, both from a scientific and informative point of view, which must be protected from the plundering it has suffered for decades.

This site is very close to Rillo de Gallo, but due to its high value and the scarce preservation to which it is subjected, we prefer to not to disclose the exact location. With the passage of time, and the increase in the number of curious people who do not give the necessary value to these sites, the remains have suffered serious attacks and looting, many of these pieces have been sold on the internet, and this is not the way to treat one of the most important sites in the whole of Castilla-La Mancha, about which there is still much study to be done.