Aosta valley

Given the scarcity of fossil remains in the region, this remarkably well-preserved impression represents an emblematic example of the particular fossilisation conditions in the Vetan travertine (Saint-Pierre), where other remains have also been found, forming an interesting flora of the past: around a dozen pine cones, some tree trunks, and numerous needle-shaped conifer leaves.

The attribution of this specimen remains uncertain, however: the presence of a short portion of stalk would favour Pinus uncinata over P. sylvestris, which is characterised by longer, oblique stalks. It cannot be ruled out, though, that fossils of both species may be present in the Vetan deposit; the characteristics observed so far are too indistinct for a confident determination as Pinus uncinata. More in-depth analyses will therefore be necessary to clarify the specimen's attribution at species level.

Currently, Pinus uncinata is absent in the immediate vicinity of the site, where larches predominate. The importance of the find, then, lies not only in the single pine cone, but in the rich fossil assemblage and the deposits in which it is preserved. The presence of this species alongside extensive travertine deposits, a calcareous rock, attests to a climate warmer than today's in the area of discovery, dating between 9.000 and 5.000 (the Holocene Climatic Optimum).