Difference Between Fossil and Artifact

Fossil vs Artifact

Have you watched Indiana Jones? Do you want to become one? Surely, every guy would dream to have the best adventure of their lifetime. Whether it be from the jungles of Africa up to the Mayan civilization in Central America, people will continue to fantasize about the great adventures Indiana Jones had.

Along the adventures of Indiana Jones, you must have acquired several fossils and artifacts. I’ll repeat. Fossils and artifacts. These two archeological words have major differences. Care to find out?

From all of the props that have been used in Indiana Jones and other films, which do you think is which? Which is the fossil and which is the artifact?

A fossil is simply a remnant of an organism whether it would be an animal or a plant. An artifact, on the other hand, is a precious archeological item that was dug from the ground or elsewhere. Artifacts have significant cultural value. Fossils have important scientific and historical value.

Fossils are older than mankind and older than artifacts. Some of the fossils date back to 10,000 years ago. Fossils can vary in size, such as from a gigantic dinosaur to the smallest bacteria. Most of the fossils are preserves of the hard structures of the organism, such as the exoskeleton, bones, or even the teeth of these animals.

Artifacts, on the other hand, date back from the earliest civilizations of mankind. The most famous artifacts are those of the Egyptian empire dating back 2,000 years ago. These artifacts can be found from burial sites of kings and queens or just ordinary people. These can also be found in lost and abandoned civilizations. Artifacts are usually sold and can be very expensive when bought. However, the countries in which these artifacts were found prohibit hoarding and selling of these items because these are national treasures depicting the culture of their past. Thus, selling these items is like selling your country’s history.

Summary:

1.A fossil is a remnant of an organism while an artifact is an object of cultural value.
2.The ages of fossils are definitely older than those of artifacts.
3.Fossils have an historical value for paleontologists and scientists while an artifact has a cultural and historical value for historians and archeologists.

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