Chenjiang

China

Chenjiang is a county located in Yunnan Province, China. It is home to Maotianshan Hill, which serves as the namesake for the Maotianshan Shales, a series of Early Cambrian sedimentary deposits found within the Chiungchussu or Heilinpu Formations.

The region is internationally recognized for its Konservat Lagerstätten, specifically the Chengjiang Fossil Site. This 512-hectare area was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2012 due to its exceptional preservation of non-mineralized soft tissues from fossilized organisms. These deposits are comparable to the Burgess Shale in British Columbia, Canada, and represent one of approximately 40 Cambrian fossil locations worldwide.

Sources

  1. Maotianshan Shales