Fossil Molluscs

Molluscs (phylum Mollusca) form an important part of the collections of the Bavarian State Collection for Palaeontology and Geology. They are represented by several hundred thousand specimens, representing tens of thousands of species, including numerous illustrated and type specimens. The focus is on mussels (Bivalvia), snails (Gastropoda) and cephalopods (Cephalopoda) from the Mesozoic of the Alps and the Franconian Alb, as well as mollusks from the Cenozoic of the Molasse Basin. In addition, there are important collections from all over the world.

The collections include type material described in a number of great monographs of ther 19th century, such as on the Late Triassic fauna of the St. Cassian beds (Münster 1841), the Petrefacta Germaniae (Goldfuss 1826–1844), Oppel’s (1863) monograph on Jurassic ammonites or on the gastropods of the Upper Jurassic Stramberg Beds from the Czech Republic (Zittel 1873). A special highlight is our important collection of coleoid squids from the Upper Jurassic lithographic limestones of Bavaria.