How is petrified wood identified?

Identifying petrified wood types can be a difficult and sometimes impossible task. Some pieces of wood lose so much of their original cell structure during the petrifying process that it is impossible to recover enough information to identify them. read more

You may be tempted to try to identify species of trees or minerals on the basis of color, but the huge range of hues found in petrified wood are usually the result of the presence of trace elements. Here is a quick guide: Black usually indicates the presence of carbon. Green or blue shades usually come from cobalt, copper or chromium. read more

While the color of the bark can be the initial clue in helping you identify fossilized wood, with some pieces of fossilized wood, you can actually see through it. You will also often see lovely spectrums of the color red in many pictures you find online or pieces you come across, in person. The growth rings are another way to identify petrified wood. read more