Hallucigenia sparsa - one of the strangest undersea animals known from the Middle Cambrian Period, long before the time of the dinosaurs. Whether you consider Hallucigenia to be proof of the massive diversity of evolution or an example of how little we can truly be sure of when it comes to exploring the past, it cannot be disputed that this little animal has found a place in palaeontological history.

Now, this useful creature comes straight from the Burgess Shale fossil bed to your home or office, providing a geeky talking point as well as handy storage for your most commonly used knitting needles, paintbrushes or pens. It can be knitted with any Sport weight, DK or Light Worsted scraps at the gauge suited to the yarn and requires very little stuffing for its size, making it a high-impact ‘leftovers’ project.

This pattern is based on the most established reconstruction of Hallucigenia sparsa following Ramsköld, 1992 and pictured here.