The Fossil Banana

This unusual specimen was found in Riding Mine at Strangeways Hall Colliery. The colliery was at Hindley near Wigan.

It was referred to as a “fossil banana” by the miners, who had the display box made and mounted it on the wall of the pit office.

The label indicates it was found in 1832 and it made its way to Bolton in December 1983, 150 years later.

Actually, it’s not a fossil banana at all. The colour is not natural; it has been painted. It is a common type of rock known as an ironstone nodule. The miners, struck by the shape, painted it yellow to improve the resemblance.