Horns of Ammon

Because of the visual similarity, they were also associated with the fossils shells of ancient snails and cephalopods, the latter now known as ammonite because of that historical connection.

Alexander the Great's deification as a conqueror had involved being declared the metaphorical "Son of Ammon" by the Oracle at Siwa.

This tradition is thought by some to have continued for centuries, with Alexander the Great being allegedly referred to in the Quran as “Dhu al-Qarnayn” (The Two-Horned One), a supposed reference to his depiction on Middle Eastern coins and statuary as having horns,[4][5] consistent with the view of most scholars on Islamic exegesis that Dhu al-Qarnayn was Alexander the Great.

[1] The direct attribution of the Horns of Ammon with fossil cephalopod shells became common during Medieval times with mentions by writers like Georgius Agricola and Conrad Gesner.

These led to a widespread association that climaxed with paleontologist Karl Alfred von Zittel naming the class of animals Ammonoidea in 1848.