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Artist Kurt Miller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Miller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 “Be Square” Marx Dinos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Schaefer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 Tall Forked Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Demarco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
© Rafael Albo de Oliveria
by Werner Herzog and set to premiere soon. We are told that the new cut looks closer in sentiment to what “ D i n o s a u r Revolution” was meant to be. James Allen, who has created a lot of art for PT has been illustrating the Mark Trail comic strip for Jack Elrod that is in your local newspaper and lately has been adding prehistoric animals to some of the strips. You can see all of his work from Mark Trail and his strip "Edge of Adventure" on Facebook. http://www.facebook.com/groups/228474710549025/ Also, don’t forget to check out Prehistoric Times magazine on Facebook. When it is time to renew your PT subscription, PLEASE renew directly through us either through Paypal at www.prehistorictimes.com or by mailing your payment to our California address. If you renew your subscription with an internet subscription company or ANYONE ELSE, we are receiving only pennies on your dollar and PT is a small business that depends on your support. Also, by the time subscription services send us your renewal, you have already missed an issue. Don’t bother sending payment to any internet companies offering subscriptions for less than $30 either as they will not be honored by us here and you will receive no magazines. Thank you. MOVING?? PLEASE let us know your new address the second you plan to move. The magazine is NOT forwarded and it costs us to resend the magazine a second time to your new “digs.” Thanks so much. ARTISTS! PT does not pay for submissions but many artists whose work is seen in Prehistoric Times get paying work from other sources. Please send jpg files of your artwork scanned at 300 DPI resolution. Send as an approx 4” jpg with your name in the title of the image--example-Triceratops by John Smith.jpg to our e-mail address or send good copies (that you don’t need returned and that aren’t too big to fit our 9 x 12 scanner bed) to our mailing address in California. We need your art and info. Thank you! For #103 Amargasaurus & Repenomanus (Sep 10, 2012) #104 Troodon & prehistoric whales (Dec 10, 2012) #105 (20 year anniversary issue)Triceratops and Dire Wolf (Mar 10, 2013).
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Summer is here again and I realize most of you are off enjoying world cruises or playing polo and are just too busy to sit down and read a magazine. Well I have Exciting news! You can now read Prehistoric Times digitally as an app: Apple iTunes - Prehistoric Times App http://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/prehistoric-timesmagazine/id530088968?mt=8 In addition to being an Apple app, PT is also featured on the magamall and pocketmags apps and on line newsstands on the following platforms: Apple Magamall App itunes.apple.com/ca/app/magamall/id455353699?mt=8 Android Market Pocketmags App https://market.android.com/details?id=com.triactivemedia.pocketmags Kindle Fire Pocketmags App http://www.pocketmags.com/kindlefire/kindlefiredownload.htm For Digital versions on your PC/Mac, you may purchase and download a digital version by going to pocketmags.com It’s pretty cool reading PT on the IPad, because you can go close-up to make the writing and the images larger for closer examination and easier reading. Well, Summer or not, I’m committed to publishing another issue (some people have suggested that I be committed) and I hope you enjoy it. What could be cooler than the largest meat-eating dinosaur Giganotosaurus? First off, I thank photo realistic artist Giang T Nguyen (GTN) for our great Giganotosaurus front cover art. I apologize to those of you whose artwork didn’t make it into this issue but Giganotosaurus is a very popular dinosaur and we received tons of great artwork. Our own Phil Hore tells us all about this awesome creature within these pages. He also describes oreodonts. You can thank long-time PT art contributor Russell J Hawley for suggesting oreodonts to be our other featured animal (and when you see all of his art in the article, you will know why he suggested it.) Amazingly talented sculptor Dave Silva has been a part of PT far too long for me not to have interviewed him. I rectify that situation in this issue. Did dinosaurs have holes in their heads? (some people have suggested that I -- oh never mind!) Our good buddy Tracy Ford talks about dinosaur skull fenestrae. “Along the Moonbeam Trail” is a long “lost” silent era dinosaur movie that has reached near mythical status. Dinosaur expert Stephen Czerkas tells us what he is finding in two newly found prints of the film with more promised in the future. We also learn about the Peabody Museum at Yale University and a huge new Museum Exhibit in Houston that takes two PT writers to cover it all. You will love computer artist Kurt Miller’s video game dinosaur art plus Pat Schaefer is back with even more information about vintage Marx dinosaur playsets. Steve DeMarco does a fine job painting a model that sculptor Sean Cooper was kind enough to supply him. Steve is looking for model work so contact him if you have a kit that you just don’t have the time to complete. And of course there is much more in this Summer issue of PT, so put down your polo mallet! Thanks again to Carl Masthay for some editing in this issue, plus both Neil Trais, and Juan Carlos Alonso for some of the graphic work. "Dinosaurs Vs. Aliens" (published through Dynamite Entertainment) is a popular comic book (sorry, I mean graphic novel.) Its story of dinosaurs and futuristic insectoid aliens is read by many. The big news is that the 96page graphic novel is being developed by "Men in Black" director Barry Sonnenfeld to become a major motion picture. Two of our favorite artists have their own blogs that you will undoubtedly enjoy. Ricardo Delgado’s is at http://ricardodelgadoart.blogspot.com/ and Luis Rey’s is at http://luisvrey.wordpress.com/ Both men promise to continually update their blogs with lots of their great dino artwork. Dinosaurs, a theme park featuring 31 life-sized animatronic dinosaurs, opened to the public recently in Secaucus, N.J. Set on 20 acres adjacent to Laurel Hill Park and located near the prehistoric Snake Hill rock formation, the exhibition includes a 90-foot Argentinosaurus, which can be seen swishing its tail as One of many life-sized dinos at the far away as the Met new Field Station: Dinosaur Park in Life Stadium and parts New Jersey of the New Jersey Turnpike. The battling stars of “Dinosaur Revolution” are being given a new life in movie theaters. The Discovery Channel/Science Channel program’s virtual prehistoric world has been re-cut into a feature film dubbed “Dinotasia”, narrated
FROM THE EDITOR
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ME S O Z O I C
First off, please call me Mike. Mr Fredericks was my dad. Secondly, “many dinosaur magazines on the market??!” Name two other dinosaur magazines out there. I don’t think there are any. Thirdly, thanks so much Zach for a very nice letter. Your two requests make me feel very lazy. One, because I have never taken the time to compose any writer guidelines for the mag and two because I have never put together a list of all of the subjects covered in the 102 issues of Prehistoric Times. For those two reasons, I ask that you e-mail your article idea or finished article to me and I will be happy to let you know if it fits into PT and second, yes, I’m sure we have covered both subjects in PT but I don’t remember which issues (and they are probably no longer available anyway) but that doesn’t mean we won’t cover them again sometime - editor.
MAIL Dear Mike, Let me be the first to congratulate you on issue #101 - a perhaps overlooked milestone! Great Knight article! Using Charles Knight’s classic illustration to kick off your new centennial was a perfect choice, remarkably accurate for its time, considering the full illustrations (pages 5, 11 & 12) show tails held aloft, not dragging, as evinced by the clear shadows below the rigid tails in the paintings. Jack Bowers, Marquette, MI
Hello Mike, I just wanted to say I enjoy your magazine immensely. I especially liked where you named the Top 10 Comic art by Jim Martinez dinosaur fight scenes of all time. I was wondering if you might do a future article on dinosaurs in comics. I can think of Tyrant by Steve Bissette, Ricardo Delgado's Age of Reptiles, Mark Charles Knight was so ahead of his time with his beautiful art, from Schultz's Xenozoic Tales, Tor by Joe Kurbert, Jack Kirby's Devil Dinosaur, his non-tail-draggers to his highly active dinosaurs “Leaping Laelops.” Anthro by Howard Post, Conan (sometimes had dinosaur-like monsters), Like Jeff Goldblum said in “Jurassic Park” paleoartists today are The War That Time Forgot on DC and Alley Oop. The Cartoon History of “standing on the shoulders” of the early artists like Knight. I must brag the Universe by Larry Gonick has a nice prehistory section in the beginning to you all that Knight’s granddaughter Rhoda Knight Kalt phoned me of his comic book run, which goes from the beginning of animals up to soon after the issue came out and told me how much she enjoyed it and modern man. I'm sure there are some I'm overlooking as well that may fall that it would have made her grandfather proud. That definitely made under the subject of dinosaurs. my day - editor I was also wondering what you might recommend in prose books as well. I'm sure there are many fiction and nonfiction books that would be worth Hey Mike, as a life long dinosaur and paleontology lover (beginning in recommending. I'd love to hear what you might suggest. Oh, and also, what my toddler years after first seeing 'The Land Before Time') I have to say I'm museums and dinosaur sites or even theme parks would you suggest to the sorry I didn't subscribe to PT years ago. That love is made all the more dinosaur lover while on a vacation? That way we could plan a trip to some enlightening by the fact that for the past eight years, I've been living close of these places. I'd love to read about some of these ideas. I love the art to Dinosaur Alley, the best bearing site on the east coast (I'm sure you know work in PT, and it's filled with trivia and so fun to read. Keep up the amazall about it). During that time, I've also had the privilege of seeing your old ing work. Regards, David Wright childhood acquaintance, the 1964 World's Fair Sinclair Triceratops at the Thanks so much for National Zoo. Until the nice e-mail and good recently reading 'The article ideas, David. Dinosaur Scrapbook', I'd Much of it has and conalways thought it was tinues to be covered in just an exact replica. PT but perhaps by Definitely looking forprinting it here, a writer ward to the next issue of will be inspired by your PT. Daniel Hagerman, suggestions - editor Crownsville MD Thanks so much Dan, and how is my old childhood acquaintance? He never writes - editor Dear Mr Fredericks, your magazine is by far my favorite publication. There are many dinosaur magazines on the market but only yours touches upon why I love dinosaurs; their mystique, their everchanging depictions in popular culture and the lasting impact of these depictions. Because your magazine means so much to me I would like to be involved as a writer. I definitely think that I could contribute some very interesting stories. On the website, there is a very easy to follow list of instructions for contributing artwork but none for written submissions. If you explain that process and describe any necessary authorial requirements, I would be much obliged. Also, if it is not too much to ask I’d like to know if any back issues have any articles related to the dinosaurs depicted in Disney Park attractions or related to the dinosaur statues of Vernal, Utah. Thanks, Zachary Honea 6
I liked the article "Top Ten Movie Dino Fights." I love the scene in "Valley of Gwangi" where Tuck (James Franciscus) is filling his canteen at the stream prior to Dino Fight #1, when the T. Rex scratches his face in homage to Willis O'Brien's T. Rex in King Kong. I originally saw "Valley Of Gwangi" in a theatre; unfortunately, the power went out prior to the final fight in the church scene. I never saw the ending until much later with the advent of VCRs. I am a big Ray Harryhausen fan. I also saw "The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms" at a theatre when I was about 10 years old. I probably saw every Ray Harryhausen film after “Beast” in a theatre, but “Gwangi” was my favorite. The Jurassic Park Movies were cool; but not enough dinosaurs and The Lost World was altered from the novel too much. Of the two recent television shows with dinosaurs, "Terra Nova" and "Primeval", I probably like Primeval the best because it has more dinosaurs and also because of Hannah Spearritt who is a throwback to the 50's babes in science fiction, such as Paula Raymond in "The Beast From 20000 by Paul Trap
gocomics.com/thatababy
Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
Fathoms." Not surprisingly my favorite comic book in my youth was "Turok Son of Stone" and I have been collecting the Turok archives as published by Dark Horse Comics. The Dark Horse Tarzan-Jesse Marsh archives feature lots of dinosaurs also, but the art is not as good as Turok. However, the best way to get dinosaur art is in Dinosaur Encyclopedias, of which I own every one I have ever run across, no thought required, I buy them on the spot. Prehistoric Times’ regular article Mesozoic Media has been a good source for books I would like. I am a long time reader of Prehistoric Times and I am John Stonestreet of Winston Salem, North Carolina.
Tyrese Williams
Kretaceous Kids Korner
I’m sure a lot of PT readers (myself included) can relate to your nice letter John. What a shame the theater lost power and you didn’t see the end of the film. Oh well, the dinosaur Gwangi didn’t get a very happy ending for himself anyway - editor
Tom Wegman Age 15 John C Womack
Maria Flores Sergio Biston
Giganotosaurus by Alexander Kleine
Maria Flores
Abo v e & Ri g ht: Giganotosaurus & Oreodont from Mr. Quick's Asbury Park High School Computer Class. Vonna O/Brien
Isabelle O’Brien
Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
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The PT DinoStore
Vintage dinosaur collectibles for sale from PT magazine “Dinosaur Collectibles” price guide co-written and signed by PT editor $49 Linemar Linde 1950s Coffee Premium plastic dinosaur figs 7 from Austria. @$10 Rare 8th Linde dinosaur to complete above set: Rare Rhamphorhynchus $49 Marx tin litho Marx orig. sm/med 50s/ 60s dinosaur toy figs (green, brown, gray) $5 Marx orig. Krono, T-rex (pot-belly or slender) $35, Brontosaurus $30 Marx original second series dinos/mammals $12 each, set of 8 - $79 Linemar Marx 60s tin litho metal friction Cynognathus or Sphenacodon $49 Marx 45mm cavemen (6 diff) $7 ea Marx 6” cavemen (6 diff) $12 ea. Multiple (MPC) dinosaur plastic figures many colors $4-8 each (inquire) Dimestore dinos J H Miller waxy plastic nice Prehistoric cave toy $49 or prehistoric woman $24 SRG J H Miller waxy plastic1950s Dimetrodon, broken feet -stands fine $49 Sinclair banks J H Miller waxy plastic1950s Stegosaurus, short tail $59, Woolly Rhino $69 J H Miller waxy plastic50s Mastodon short tusk $59, Triceratops short horn $69 J H Miller SMALL Dimetrodon or Brontops $149 each. Linde Sinclair 60s solid Worlds Fair dinos (6 diff. various prices) (Orig. bagged set $99) JH Miller cave Sinclair 1960s Bronto bronze metal bank $99 or chrome metal tray $59 Brooke Bonds Sinclair 1960s green plastic 10” brontosaur bank $24.95 Sinclair 1934 Dinosaur book $25 & Sinclair1964 Worlds Fair booklet $15 Sinclair rare hollow NY Worlds Fair Brontosaurus looking backward $59 Sinclair 60s colorful Hardback “The Exciting World of Dinosaurs” $39 Sinclair hollow dinosaurs 64 NY World’s Fair dinos in several colors @$30 Sinclair album and complete stamps set1935 $35 or 1938 $45 or 1959 $20 Palmer Hollow, dimestore plastic dinos, 60s/70s six different $8 each (see photo) Og, Son of Fire dino Alva 1960s metal Stegosaurus or Duckbilled Trachodon (each damaged) @$49 Sinclair hollow dinosaurs 1934 Book SRG Small metal dinosaurs Mosasaurus $89, caveman $85, Plesiosaurus $60, Pteradactyl $49, T. rex, Triceratops, Dimetrodon, Trachodon, Brontosaurus or Stego $40 ea. SRG Large metal Tricer $79, Tracho $79, or T. rex $69 La Brea Tar Pits Wm Otto prehistoric mammal metal figs. Sabertooth cat $125, Mammoth $150,Vulture $175. Vintage1930s “Og, Son of Fire” Metal Three Horn Dinosaur ~ Libby's Milk Premium $59 Nabisco cereal prehistoric 60’s Japan Porcelain Dimetrodon, Stego, Bronto, T-rex or Protoceratops 5” @$30 mammals Nabisco silver prehistoric mammal cereal premiums early 1960s $10 ea. All 8 $75 Nabisco/Fritos dinosaur premiums, gray (60s) $5 each, 1950s green & red $10 ea. ROM (Royal Ontario Museum)plastic dinosaur figures. $15 ea, Pteranodon $25 MPC Kleinwelka lrg. German plastic Big sized Brachiosaurus $99, Anatosaurus $69, Deinosuchus $29 Multiple dinos View Master Prehistoric Animals 1960s comp. 3 reels/booklet nm $24 Topps complete set of 12 - 2” plastic dinosaur figures Nice! Early 90s. $35 Animals Of The Past Golden Stamp Book 1968 - $35 Brooke Bonde 60s dinosaur trading album w/ comp. set of cards attached $59 Rare Bandai motorized Dimetrodon or Brontosaurus model kit in box @$49 Topps dino set Pyro Protoceratops model kit in orig. 1960s box@ $22 Palmer 1960s Mastodon skeleton or Brontosaurus skeleton $45 each MIB Alva metal 1960s ITC - T. rex, Brontosaurus or Neanderthal man skeletal model kits @$59 Stegosaurus PT back issues 23, 24, - $16 32, 46, 54, - $11 27, 31, 33, 38, 41, 42, 45, 52, 66, 74, 75, 76, 78, 82, 85, 89, 93 - 101 only $7 each on sale (PT issue prices include shipping) Please add $5 shipping in U.S. Call or e-mail me for details about condition. Mike Fredericks Prehistoric Times ITC/Ringo 145 Bayline Cir. models Sinclair chrome tray Folsom, California 95630-8077 (916) 985-7986
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Wm Otto Mammoth ROM plastic dinos
Nabisco dinos
Left: Sinclair 1960s hardback
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60s Japan
Sinclair 1938 stamps & album
60s Viewmaster 60s Marx large cavemen Sinclair 1959 Oil dino stamps & album
Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
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Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
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Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
Giganotosaurus by Phil Hore
[email protected]
Above art ©Damir Martin
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The Andesaurus herd flows about each other like some enormous bait ball as individuals react to the predators circling around them. With every exit blocked by tooth and claw, the sauropods bleat and scream their frustration as those on the outer edges try to push their way past those on the inside to what they perceive as the safer center of the group. Tails and long necks unthinkingly lash about, while younger animals, caught under or between the heavier bodies of the adults, cry out in terror and pain, adding to the pandemonium.
ing up the Sculpture by Jorge Blanco pressure and increasing t h e i r chances of a fatal mistake from their prey. To attack such a herd outright would lead to a committed defense and possible injury, but to terrorize the sauropods; strip away their resolve and let their own fears shatter their cohesion…it only takes an individual to break and stubborn resistance will melt into chaos after all. Knowing this, the flock of giganotosaurs almost nonchalantly stride about the wide riverbank, but this is just an illusion. Every sense is alert for an opening into the writhing maelstrom of flesh trapped between them…and then it happens.
©Phil Brownlow www.philbrownlow.co.uk
There is no longer a herd here as these animals devolve to something far more primeval; the survival of the fittest…and the luckiest. Each time it looks as though the herbivores are about to organize themselves and make a committed break for freedom, their attackers rush in and cut them off. Like sharks, a flock of Giganotosaurus prowl the edges of the herd, keep© John Sibbick www.johnsibbick.com Screaming, a juvenile becomes entangled under a large male Andesaurus who, with a bellow, crashes to the ground. Before the bull can regain its feet, two giganotosaurs sprint forward and hit the flanks of the sauropod, their added weight pinning it down. Powerful arms clutch at the their victim, allowing jaws lined with rows of serrated teeth to slash through the sauropod’s thick hide © Jim Martinez
© Frederik Spindler
and slice away huge clods of flesh, leaving behind long, deep, ragged wounds. www.frederik-spindler.de/news-infos.html Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
With a gaping hole in the predator blockade, the Andesaurus herd breaks 13
free and escapes, but their departure is no longer what interests the theropods. Like forty foot piranhas the giganotosaurs swarm about the giant sauropod who, despite dozens of bleeding wounds, continues to fight for its life with a veracity bordering the unnatural. Though gruesome, the injuries inflicted thus far are still somewhat superficial, and the sauropod has every chance of surviving if it can just get up. Dodging flailing limbs and a tail as large and as heavy as a tree, the Giganotosaurus pack piles on, their weight keeping the bull down and their bites adding to his overall blood-loss. Slowly, inevitably, the Jurassic behemoth’s struggles weaken as it bleeds out. Before this happens though, the sauropod’s belly is opened and the largest theropods hungrily jockey for position to get their snouts into the cavity, fighting for the more succulent morsels inside. Liver, heart, kidneys and lungs, the largest get the best pieces, leaving the tougher muscles for everyone else to wrestle over…not that there’s a need to fight as today there’s more than enough for everyone. S o u t h e r n Nightmares
© Tallack Refshaw
Star Trek vs. Star Wars, Justice League vs. the Avengers, Coke vs. Pepsi, team Edward or team Jacob, these are the important questions that
© Joe Choate
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websites and late night arguments have been fuelled by for years; and for paleo-fans one of the most important questions we fight over is who was larger and would win in a fight, T. rex or Giganotosaurus…which team are you on? It feels as though the battle has been neck and neck for years; with one specimen uncovered settling the argument, only to have a new fossil from the other camp unearthed that was even larger. Back and forth, back and forth it has gone with no clear winner. In October 2010, PT editor Mike Fredericks and I attended the ‘Dinosaur Sideshow’ at the Fernbank Museum in Atlanta, Georgia, where Mike got to catch up with a bunch of the magazine’s readers. ‘Magnanimous Mesozoic Mike’ gave a well received lecture on dinosaur toy collecting, while I got to waffle on about the link between O.C. Marsh, E.D. Cope and the Battle of the Little Bighorn. As fun as this all was, it was getting to stand under the two Argentinean giants dominating the museum’s main hall that made the
© Keith Strasser
©Robert Nicholls www.paleocreations.com
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© Ted Nelson
© Alice Turner
trip extra special. The enormous sauropod, Argentinosaurus, and its stalker, one of the only northern hemisphere castings of Giganotosaurus, make you feel really small, and I have to say that looking up at these monsters, the argument is far from settled. Bigger, heavier and faster, Giganotosaurus carolinii looks the clear winner; yet I feel even the largest individual would have been bitten in half by a T. rex, whose skull and bite force continues to impress. Though enormous, a Giganotosaurus skull never had the large muscles powering its jaws that a T. rex did, and though their bite was strong, their teeth were large, flat sided blades, meaning they were good for slashing victims but did not have the powerful the bite-and-hold of other predators. Any sideways movement against these teeth © Mark Hallett would have snapped them, which could explain their powerful forearms and shoulders. These would have helped grasp and hold struggling prey, stopping any sudden jerk which could have broken teeth, a real necessity as a toothless Giganotosaurus was a dead Giganotosaurus. Their jaws were also unusually built for a theropod and possibly evolved to deal with the odd stresses incurred by opening a mouth wide, not to grab and grip, but to slash and tear. The
© Rafael Albo de Oliveria
© Jon Ascher
largest
©Radek Michalik
Giganotosaurus remains suggest an animal around 43ft in length and weighing around 13 tons (3ft longer, and almost 4 tons heavier than T. rex) - though one fragmentary fossil suggests a specimen nearly 8% larger. Some Giganotosaurus vertebrae are so large they’ve been confused with those of a sauropod. To my thinking this makes the score 1 all! The way China is the current hotbed for small dinosaur discoveries, Argentina has been the place to go to find large ones. Debatably the largest sauropod was Argentinosaurus, while Giganotosaurus (the ‘Great Southern Lizard’) is amongst the largest theropods. The two next largest are both from Africa, with very close affinities between the South American carnivore and the slightly larger Carcharodontosaurids from North Africa. This relationship was strengthened when a study of a well preserved Giganotosaurus braincase revealed strong affinities between both Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
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Sculptor Shane Foulkes’ sculpture painted by Chris Thomas
© William Stout www.williamstout.com
dinosaurs, as well as the sinraptorids from Asia. Studying the cavity of the © Juanjo Castellano www.juanjocastellano.com
© Arthur Machabee
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© Paul Passano skull can show how the brain was formed, and is a great method for finding family associations as brains are “Chillin’ after the Killin’ slower to change © Phil Coles than other body features (such as legs), which adapt quickly to e nv i r o n m e n t s thus we get a clearer understanding of interspecies relationships. Thanks to the close relationship (recognized by things like their braincase) between these three groups, we know there was at least one substantial land bridge between Africa and South America (and at some point Asia) during the Late Jurassic to the Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
Early Cretaceous, allowing the ancestors of all three to reach these regions.
By Mike Fredericks
Though Giganotosaurus seems to have been the brainiest of the carcharodontosaurids- the theropod line that gave rise to Allosaurus- their brain was still smaller than that of a T. rex. Tyrannosaurus was a maniraptoran, making them ostensibly birds, and while birds don’t have the largest birds, they are amongst the most intelligent animals today. This means T. rex could bite harder and likely out think Giganotosaurus any day of the week. I think that makes the score 2-1 to Tyrannosaurus. The speed of theropods has always been of great interest, and recent research suggests Giganotosaurus could run at 31mph. Any faster and it would have lost stability and fallen; and to fall at such a speed and from such a height would have been dangerous, if not lethal. Although these animals ©Jason R. Abdale
[email protected]
seem to be built for speed, the danger of injury has led many paleontologists to conclude that they just didn’t run as fast as their anatomy suggests they could. Does this sound a little odd to anyone else? Animals are tough and their abilities can never be discounted. Size and weight suggest the larger the animal, the slower they must be to keep injuries at a minimum, but this just isn’t the case. Rhinos, hippos, tigers, elephants, grizzlies and ostriches are the largest terrestrial animals and all are freakishly quick…even a Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
giraffe can hustle when it needs too, and this list doesn’t even include the horse. If anyone has e v e r watched a steeple chase they’d know horses are huge animals capable of leaping fences and running very fast, and when they fall they can get hurt…heck, they don’t get hurt, they get killed. The point is they very rarely do get hurt © Dan Holland
© Brian Ford
© James Robins
17
charodontosaurid, Mapusaurus, is more numerous and a number of individuals have been found together, suggesting flock behavior. If this social organization transferred to the larger species, it is possible Giganotosaurus moved about in packs. One of these monsters would be bad enough, but a number, all hunting together in a co-ordained way, well that’s a nightmare beyond description that even a mighty T. rex would have run from.
when they fall. Height gives stability and the chance to catch yourself if you trip. Kids fall all the time because they don’t have the distance from the ground (that the taller adults do) to ‘catch’
So, anyone keep track of the score? © John Trotter
themselves if they stumble (plus their heads are huge and, once off-balance, down they go), yet adults rarely fall because we have time and experience to get us out of trouble. We are also well developed with strong legs, a good sense of balance and a head now in proportion to the rest of our body. Like a cat we twist and spin, flail and bend to either get a foot under us or land in the most advantageous position (generally our butts or on the flat of our backs).
© Mark Hallett
Giganotosaurus was a very exciting new dinosaur fossil when it was discovered and described in the early 1990s and it has piqued the imagination of many. Consequently a number of Giganotosaur toys and other figures have been produced. Carnegie Safari, Bullyland, Schleich (including a new Schleich 2012) figure have all created popular figures of this enormous meat-eater. So have lesser known companies like © Luke Stelmaszek
© James Robins
I’m confident the largest theropods were the same way. Their great height meant they rarely tripped as they could see trouble and pick their paths care© Trisha Brumitt
Resaurus Carnage, Lontic, Yujin, and Happinet. There are many Giganotosaurus books and even trading cards. Sega and CollectA offer a Mapusaurus which is closely related to Giganotosaurus. Wild Safari and Sega produced Carchardontosaurus figures, another close relative. Resin Giganotosaurus models have been © Asher Elbein sculpted by most all of the talented sculptors that you see advertise in PT including Shane Foulkes, Jorge Blanco, Galileo of GeeneModels, and more.
fully, while their tails and well muscled flanks would have allowed a falling dinosaur to twist and land in a more advantageous position. Though Giganotosaurus fossils are not common, the closely related car18
Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 20121
squirming through grey drifts of cloud. Hot air lay in a choking blanket over the plains, and the sun burned a dull crimson in the hazy sky.
Nightfall, 65 MYA
“The star fell,” Four-Feather chirped quietly, hoping that Hard-Shin would listen. But Hard-Shin only glanced over, eyes calm.
By Asher Y. Elbein
“It is not important,” she grunted. Long-Claw snarled as he flushed a rat. His two sisters watched as he gulped it down and batted at the remaining scraps of fur. Four-Feather’s stomach gave a sickly gurgle at the sight. She stood and stalked into the brush, nosing the ground for any sign of food. After a few minutes she located a shallow nest at the base of a spindly tree. It had been long abandoned; the egg shells were ground into powder, and withered hatchlings lay dead in the dust. She gulped them down, glad of the meal, but felt her stomach tighten once more in worry. “Why was it there?” She signed to Long-Claw when she re-emerged onto the grassland. © Asher Elbein
“Rain is late,” Long-Claw grunted. He re-folded his wings carelessly, bits of fluff dotting his jaws. “Hatchlings die. It is always so.”
There was a distant rumble of thunder, and Four-Feather sniffed the breeze. “Rain smells wrong,” she hissed. “Clutch-mates,” Four-Feather chirped. The Velociraptor stood tall and flicked her red feathers. “A star has fallen.” “What of it?” Long-Claw grunted. “We do not hunt stars.” The ferns rustled in the stiff breeze, their bronzed fronds curled from the heat. A flock of white winged pterodactyls soared high above the withered grassland, leathery wings silhouetted against the spattered clouds. Red wisps uncoiled sluggishly over the yellow sky, streaked with poisonous black. In the distance, a haze of rain smeared itself over the foothills. “Look!” Four-Feather insisted, before quailing under Long-Claw’s golden eyes. She was too inexperienced to challenge her older brother directly, so she crouched down and tucked in her claws apologetically. “Blood star grew,” she hissed meekly. Long-Claw cocked his head. “So?” “Now it’s gone.” Four-feather chirped. “Strange.” Long-Claw fluffed his feathers and yawned, losing interest. “Stars are nothing to the pack. Let’s hunt.” Hard-Shin looked up and sniffed, her grey feathers fluffed with annoyance. She was the oldest and largest of the siblings, and had outlived two mates. She stared at Long-Claw and sneezed. “No hunt. Smells like fire.” Four-Feather hissed in agreement. The three glanced around uneasily, at the dry trees and grass and the sluggish, dry air. Thunder snarled in the far distance, hot flashes of light igniting the overcast sky. “Cloud fire,” Long-Claw growled. “We should move.” Hard-Shin blinked in agreement and stood. She folded her wings and trotted away toward the foothills, her younger siblings following close behind. Four-Feather trailed behind the other two, glancing an occasional furtive glance at the roiling sky. Confusion and worry burned in her gut. A small copse of trees loomed ahead, purple shadows smeared invitingly over the yellowed grass. Hard-Shin angled toward it. A moment later she sat crouched in the shade, preening. Four-Feather approached Hard-Shin and sat a few feet away. She scratched at the ground for a moment, then cocked her head to glance up at the heavens. The viscous haze had spread, a thousand bloody strands Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
Long-Claw cocked his head at her. “You are young. You worry to much.” But he too glanced at the distant clouds, his claws twitching uneasily. “Let’s go.” Hard-Shin grunted and scratched at her beak. “Rain comes. This is shelter.” “Fire comes also,” Long-Claw stamped. “Don’t be a fool.” Hard-Shin hissed at the challenge, her claws swinging. A sickle claw tapped at the ground, and Long-Claw took a few hasty steps backward. “This is no shelter from fire,” he signed carefully. He knew better then to further try his sister’s patience. Hard-Shin’s tail twitched. “Rain comes,” she declared. Then she shrugged. “Fire, who knows?” “Still. . .” Long-Claw hissed. Their gazes locked. Four-feather looked from one to the other, blinking uncertainly. Finally, Hard-Shin cocked her head and tucked her wings, claws pointedly exposed. “We move at evening,” she said, fluffing her feathers irritably. “When it’s cooler.” They waited, dozing under a sun burned crimson by the sickening sky. The heat did not lessen with the growing darkness: if anything, it grew, spreading out in lapping waves of shimmering air. Breath came thick and gritty to Four-Feather’s nostrils, and she blinked in the searing dry. It had been hot since the star fell. She remembered it vaguely: an angry smear of light blooming in the night sky, a long lashing tail growing behind it. Where other stars vanished at sunrise, it lingered. And then it was gone, and the ground had shaken like a wounded beast. Four-Feather blinked at the memory and began to preen, trying to calm her racing heart. “Hard times are coming,” she gestured to Hard-Shin. But her sister ignored her. Darkness folded its wings over the stained clouds, bleeding down through the yellow drifts. The breeze picked up for a moment, and in the distance a dull red glow lashed at the stars.
Continues on Pg 22 19
How to Draw Dinosaurs By Tracy Lee Ford
[email protected]
To Fenestrate or Not to Fenestrate, That Is the Question.
Figure 1. Fenestrae in the skull of Allosaurus. A, External naris; B, maxillary fenestra; C, antorbital fenestra; D, orbital fenestra; E, lateral temporal fenestra; F, temporal fenestra; G, external mandibular foramen.
This may seem like a no-brainer, but if theropods were alive today, would we see the fenestrae in their skull? The vast majority of artists depict a theropod’s head with the outline of the fenestrae. I myself have done this for decades, but is that correct? Unfortunately there is no modern analogy that we can use to determine this. Fenestra, (plural fenestrae) is Latin for window or hole and generally refers to the openings in the skull. Each opening (fenestra) has its own term. What got me interested in this subject was a Tarbosaurus skull I saw at a Tucson fossil show. As I looked at the skull, I noticed that the outside had a texture to it but the inside of the fenestra was smooth. I closely examined the skull and noticed that the lachrymal vacuity (which is under the “horn” of the lachrymal) and the inside border of the fenestra were also smooth. As I visited museums, I began to look more closely at theropod skulls and noticed the same thing. The only way for a bone to get smooth was for something to rub against it. Something was there, moving against the bone in and around the fenestra and had Figure 2. Illustration of Allosaurus head. A, With filled up the “empty” space. the outline of the fenestrae; B, without the outline of the fenestrae. Theropods (saurischians and dinosaurs in general) have several fenestrae, ‘windows’ on the side and the top of their skull—five lateral “fenestrae”: maxillary fenestra, antorbital fenestra, orbital fenestra, lateral temporal fenestra, and, one on top of the skull; temporal fenestra as well as the nasal (external naris). The majority of ornithischians don’t have an antorbital fenestra. Using Dr. Lawrence Witmer’s work, we know that the fleshy nose sat lower on the snout than was originally thought. The soft tissue of the naris would have filled the whole nasal area, and the area would not show the outline of the nasal “fenestra.” The lateral fenestra is where the jaw muscles pass on the inside of the skull, and the same muscles pass through the temporal fenestra and attach to the parietal. The dentary has an external mandibular foramen (similar to a fenestra), which would be covered by the dentary muscles. One problem is we don’t know exactly what filled not only the fenestra, but also the inside of the skull of theropods. I found the best way to really see how empty the skull of a theropod skull is is to look at the skull upside down. For me, it was looking at “Stan” the T. rex. In larger theropods you can place your arm in one side of the fenestra and push it completely to the other side of the skull and not hit a bone. We can extrapolate some things that filled up the inside of the skull: sinus, muscles, various soft palate tissue, etc. I’ve talked about the lateral temporal fenestra and the dentary 20
muscles and how the jaw muscles were in and around the fenestra. I’ve talked about the nasal area and how it looked, but I haven’t talked about the orbit or the antorbital fenestra. Other than the eye and probably some muscles, I don’t know what filled up the rest of the orbital fenestra. And I surely don’t know what filled up the antorbital fenestra other than to say something filled it up because of the smooth bone.
Since the soft tissue of the naris filled up the nasal area and the jaw muscles filled up the lateral temporal fenestra, you would not see the outline of those fenestrae. I’d wager that whatever filled up the antorbital fenestra filled it to its edges. The skin covering the fenestra would not only cover the fenestra completely, but also the outline of the fenestra would be obscured by the skin. Could the skin that covered the fenestra bulge outward? Like blowing up a balloon? Could the skin have been a different color? It’s possible, but for now I don’t believe anyone would be able to even notice the fenestrae in a living theropod, and that would also apply to other animals with fenestrae, not just dinosaurs. This would dramatically change not only the look of theropod heads but those of dinosaurs in general. I have a very important announcement to make. I have a book contract with McFarland. My book is called (for now) “Paleozoic and Mesozoic Flying and Gliding Tetrapods.” It will cover pterosaurs, flying birds, gliding theropods, a few mammals, those weird large “reptiles” that look like a living “flying dragon, that is, Draco the gliding lizard,” and a few others. The book should be out at either the end of 2013 or the beginning of 2014 (I hope).
Figures 3. Reconstruction of Daspletosaurus torosus without the outline of the fenestrae.
So what’s going on with my internet site: Paleofile? I’m still working on putting in the Paleozoic and Mesozoic fishes. I will take my time with this and not rush into it. Also, when it is done, it will have a different format, one that I will eventually make the same way for the rest of the site. This will mean that I won’t be listing all the tetrapods but all the Vertebrata of the Paleozoic and Mesozoic. This will take me a few months. After that I’ll be working on putting more illustrations on the site. The site has several areas: an easy index (just click on the name, and it will take you to the systematic list), or you can go directly to the systematic list (eggs and ichnology included). Click on the name in the list, and it will take you to a more compressive listing; Genus, species, etymology, holotype (lecto-, para-, etc), locality, horizon (formation), biostratigraphy (faunal zone if known), Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
age, material, and referred material. There will be two faunal lists, one in which you can check your area or any area in the world to see what animals were found there and the other will be ages. If you’re interested in biostratigraphy, you can see which animals lived with which at that time from around the world. There are also smaller sections: paleopathology, histology, extinction, taphonomy, skin, coprolites, etc. Eventually it will be fully illustrated. www.paleofile.com The BIG NEWS is I've now made it a free site, so a subscription is no longer needed, but I'll be adding a donation button. Tracy L. Ford
Giganotosaurus by Tracy Ford
Artist Jim Boydston with life sized Deinonychus made from new and recycled material. Please check out the web site to see more models, murals, and flatwork.
www.dinojimboydston.com
Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
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Continuing from Pg 19 Hard-Shin took notice. “Fire,” she croaked worriedly. “Fire,” Long-Claw snarled in agreement. He stood up and trotted ahead, standing tall to stare at the distant glow. “Not far,” he gestured. Then he glanced at the foothills behind them, where a black fog of rain shrouded the rolling slopes.
© Asher Elbein
The Pack met each other’s eyes in silent accord. Then, as one creature, they turned and ran. They tore through the brown grassland, dust and dried bracken rising in their wake. The moon and stars flickered with a harsh yellow glow. Four-feather’s gut rolled in terror. A scorching breeze rolled off of the distant thunder head, and she ducked her snout against heat. It carried with it a strange smell, a sharp chemical odor that burned her nostrils. Storm clouds marched across the evening sky, lightning lancing down through the dusty air. Glancing behind, Four-feather saw a line of flame advancing with terrible speed. She turned and ran harder, brush cracking and disintegrating under her feet. Thunder rolled and cracked overhead. Lightning struck the plains ahead of them and the grass ignited with a ravenous snarl. Hard-Shin screeched in frustration and swerved, her siblings following instinctively. Ahead of them the prairie burned, a swelling blaze bounding forward in a haze of smoke. The underside of the clouds glowed with blinding light; and in the blackness above a single blood red star winked into life. A gust of baking wind rolled from the storm, bringing with it a wet spatter of acidic rain. The water lashed Four-feather’s snout, her skin prickling and burning where it landed. In the smoke and ash, she soon lost track of the others. Behind her the blazing wall grew, rolling over the grass, sparks flying like spittle from hungry jaws. The flames ahead of them screamed in response. The air spun, caught between two walls of fire, a baking whirlwind of dust and dried grass and sparks. Four-feather squinted as she ran, her eyelids cracking and peeling as bits of dirt slashed at her face. She called out in desperate, wordless panic; but the bellow of the flames drowned her out.
Something sailed overhead, a black silhouette against the dancing light, and landed in a shower of dirty water. Long-claw paddled desperately, his feathers soaked with blood and dirt. Hardshin ran past, skidded on the hot mud, glanced back, and then waded in as deep as she could. One of her eyes drooped white under a mass of hideous burns and smoking feathers. “Death,” Fourfeather gestured miserably. “The sky bleeds death.” The inferno closed around them, steam and smoke hissing in the acidic deluge. Four-Feather crouched low in the water, the roar and snap melding above her into the terrible howl of a dying monster. Somewhere in the darkness Hard-shin was choking, a tiny, piteous sound. Long-claw sucked at the air with hollow, wheezing breaths. How long passed, Four-Feather did not know. She sank into a stupor, stunned and battered, eyes unseeing. Finally the burning darkness and the stinging rain faded, letting in weak stabs of warm sunlight. She rose, chilled, from the water. Her feathers were matted with slime and blood. Horrible festering burns spread up and down her legs and one of her wings had been torn open. But she was alive. Long-Claw was stirring as well, his head a mass of burns. He shook himself and stalked clumsily out of the water, then turned to stare at her. “Come,” he snarled. Four-Feather padded forward instinctively, and then paused to stare back at the water. Hard-Shin floated, her gaze wide and unseeing, her sides frozen in death. “We lived,” Long-Claw hissed through a blackened snout. “She didn’t.” “Yes,” Four-Feather peeped. She took one last glance at her older sister’s body. No flies circled above her. There were no more flies. All around the two stretched a field of crumbling ash. The sky lay brittle and black and dead; the few beams of sunlight that broke through swirled with dust and soot. “A star fell.” Four-Feather signed weakly. “And it brought this.” “We’re alive,” Long-Claw barked. “It’s over.”
The inferno reared and clawed at the dark sky, and the black rainfall tumbled down to meet it. Ash and smoke fell about Four-Feather in a choking fog. She ran alone, gasping for air; and then the wind changed and she saw her siblings running beside her.
Four-Feather looked up. The air was choked with dust, and the skies were as well. But she could still see the red flower blooming overhead, growing huge and vibrant with malevolent light. A long tail was spreading out behind it, snapping at the horizon with insatiable hunger.
A blanket of smoke spread its murderous wings over the sky. The moon bled red light. And the crimson star grew, flickering madly as it tumbled ever closer, ever larger.
There was a flash of searing brightness. A moment later the ground shook and the clouds danced, a spiraling column rising unimaginably high. A vast wall of grey marched toward them, and the wind began to blow.
The world spun around Four-Feather in a dizzying blur of blood and ash and acid, her skull throbbing with pain. Then cold liquid splashed under her feet and she stumbled with a surprised scream. Her head plunged under in a shock of freezing water, and she struggled up, gasping. A spring fed pond, tiny but deep. Salvation.
“Yes,” Four-Feather mourned. She made one last, quiet sign, her eyes closed against the searing ash, night falling around them for the last time. “A star fell. And now it’s over.”
“Safe!” She rasped. “Water! Safe!” 22
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Camarasaurus caudals
Juvenile Apatosaurus
Jurassic Dinosaur Bones & Teeth, Minerals and Paleo Art (e)
[email protected] Torvosaurus tooth
Stegosaurus, Apatosaurus and Diplodocus specimens available!
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Stegosaurus
Danburite
Allosaurus tooth
Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
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Traveling “Along The Moonbeam Trail” by Stephen Czerkas For the last few years I have been working on a bio- motion pictures, but he has been largely unknown to film graphical book/documentary on Major Herbert M. scholars who have ignored and even worse, misrepreDawley. This project started when I helped in the discov- sented his contributions. Without Dawley hiring O'Brien ery of his film, "Along The Moonbeam Trail." It was as his assistant to work on "The Ghost of Slumber originally a 2 reel film, but Mountain," O'Brien's only the last reel was found. career may well have Fortunately, this contained been over before he had all of the dinosaur footage. the chance to work on The film is remarkably well "The Lost World" and preserved, despite being "King Kong." This early made of a nitrate film stock and largely unknown hiswhich is highly prone tory of stop-motion and towards deterioration. The dinosaurs in the movies stop-motion animation is is revealed in great detail very smooth and natural in the Dawley biography. looking. Based on his own personal scrapbooks and For several decades there diaries, along with has been a controversy unpublished documents about the from several archives, stop-motion Dawley's life story will in the take him from a movie. The Dawley's T. rex from "Along The Moonbeam Trail" in 1920. maligned obscurity to points of contention deal with whether or not it being one of the best known pioneers of special effects in was done by Willis H. O'Brien (who did stop-motion and one of the most interesting people ever "The Lost World" and "King Kong"), involved with and if the dinosaur footage was compiled dinosaurs. from edited out-takes from "The Ghost of Slumber Mountain." The short answer to these questions is "No" but Major Herbert M. Dawley in 1919. you will have to wait a little longer to get the full story with all the details. "Along The Moonbeam Trail" will be included in the Dawley biography, as well as, many of his other films which were thought to have been lost forever. Dawley was actually one of the most important people in the history of special effects in 24
Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
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Struthiomimus is covered with down and is attached with a concealed peg to the roof of the mouth of the Tyrannosaurus. Subtle options for detaching it spring forth irresistibly. It is very hard to do something new and original with Old & new Safari Tyrannosaurus because it has Ltd Ceratosaurus been created so widely and By Randy Knol figures often. This is a notable design
[email protected] success for CollectA and designwww.dinosaurcollector.150m.com er Anthony Beeson. The added value comes with the dead Wild Safari has answered my wish! I have been Triceratops, done in the same waiting a long time for a quality reconstruction style as the new large 1/15th of Ceratosaurus. It is a popular choice for chiscale Triceratops and nasaurs (toys from Asia) and toy bin figures. It was one of the Jurassic Park Torosaurus from last year. Then there is the Hypsilophodon family with metal figures even though it had only a brief walk-on in the third film. It is cycad. This could actually represent any of the small ornithopods that lived a distinctive animal whose prominent nose horn and two smaller eye horn- through the age of dinosaurs. There are four figures in various sizes and lets make it easy to differentiate from the masses of T. rexes in low-end poses. They are firmly attached to the base, a provocative challenge for cussets. Carnotaurus, the other horned dinosaur, may be suppressing the pro- tomization. The whole release seems to shout “Make me a play set!” duction of other horned predators in high quality companies. The few Schleich established a recognizable style with their Replica Saurus reconCeratosaurus figures produced have been short lived; case in point are the structions done in conjunction the Humboldt Museum. PT was treated to Battat figure and the squatting early access of the new 2012 releases. Replica Saurus figure. The longestThe new figures are intermediate in lived was the Wild Safari figure from size, between the Replica Saurus and the original release. This was an early standard figures. There are four Jurassic figure done before Safari Ltd took figures. The Schleich Apatosaurus has direct control of the designs. The always been robust. The 2012 version is 2012 release captures all the key no exception. It is a convincing repreNew CollectA figures diagnostic features that distinguish sentation of Apatosaurus louisae, the the species. Besides having horns, the Schleich Apatosaurus through the ages animal is bipedal with strong jaws and short arms. Unlike most other theropods, it has a four-fingered forearm, and unlike other reproductions, the fourth finger is accurately shown as distinctly smaller on Safari Ltd’s figure. The tail is deep and flexed, similar to that of alligators. My favorite part of the model is the armored skin. Unlike other theropods, Ceratosaurus had small boney plates along the back. The coloring is a realistic brown, lighter at the water line with the throat and chest flushed red. The skull, teeth, skin, horns, and claws are detailed. I would have been tempted to brighten the horns. Schleich Brachiosaurus largest of the species. The torso is This is easily the most detailed and accurate & Allosaurus deep, reflecting the broad rib cage. The Ceratosaurus figure, and it has been worth the vertebrae are prominent; the tail is wait. held above the ground swinging sideCollectA continues to be a company of ways. The nostrils are set high, as is vision with its 2012 releases. The company has the traditional view in Europe, a expanded its range of value added products. Schleich trademark. The figure is Value-added products are releases that support painted a tan color with a pattern of a toy figure line. The Marx Company was red highlights and patches. The skin is famous for its range of value-added pieces that done in cross hatches. The front limbs were used to create unmatched playsets for a have a single claw each, while the back generation. PT received review copies of the legs have three claws. This is a smaller 2012 Tyrannosaurus, dead Triceratops, and and brighter version of the retired cycad with Hypsilophodon family. The 2009 Replica Saurus figure. Tyrannosaurus looks to be modeled on the Brachiosaurus keeps the African Sue skeleton at The Field Museum. The large reconstruction with short torso and head and thick neck are balanced by a full tail. longer front legs. The neck is held forThe legs and feet are remarkably gracile so that the model avoids the over- ward and swinging right. The legs are proportionally thinner than previous sized feet commonly used to balance models. The skin texture is irregular with Schleich Stegosaurus bipedal models. The skin is detailed elephantine folds. The color is brown, with irregular tubercles and there is a broken with lighter stripes. The coloring small fringe running down the back. and reconstruction is in the same style but The way the figure balances is impresthe figure is modeled in a more active sive and shows the progress CollectA posture. The figure is much smaller than has made in the manufacturing process. the retired 2009 Replica Saurus. The It carries a remarkably well done Allosaurus shows the Walking with Struthiomimus in its jaws. The Dinosaurs (WWD) influence of the 2008
Dinosaur Collector News
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Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
Replica Saurus figure. While the original Schleich figure and the smaller standard look Dinowaur like the most common of species, Allosaurus fragilis, in 2008 the figure changed to Allosaurus jimmadseni. The new figure recalls the reconstruction used in the spin off WWD documentary “The Ballad of Big Al.” The big change other than the reduced size is the articulated jaw, which is disguised by a patch. Stegosaurus is a slightly reduced version of the discontinued museum figure. It has the same alternating double row of plates. The skin is patterned and shaded very much like the 2007 Humboldt version. The design continuity, original reconstruction with high quality production, makes this just what a Schleich collector expects to buy from retailers. The Dinosaur Toy Forum (on-line) is a good source for information on European collectables. Dinowaurs is the latest collectable card and figure set from Europe. Series 1 is a release of 36 figures, which are about the size of Safari Toob figures. Each figure is purchased for about 3 – 5 US dollars. The figure comes with a collectable card that is used in a game. There is a web-enabled version to play on the internet. This is very much the business model used by the Dino King and Predators collectable fads overseas. Like the Kaiyodo UHA figures, you buy a package, like a small corn chips bag, without knowing the figure inside. The frustration of getting duplicates has buyers publicly groping packages prior to purchase looking for rare figures. I still have not obtained a Titanosaurus and the “Cracker Jack surprise in a box marketing” irritates
Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
me too. The figures are detailed rather than accurate but the series contains several figures not produced by other toy companies. The Permian dinocephalian Keratocepahlus is collectable. It is a long snouted relative of the classic Moschops. The Talarurus, Aucasaurus, and Monolophosaurus are all only available from Dinowaurs. The card game involves comparing cards between figures, which are rated in three categories. Winning two or more categories means one figure defeats another. The execution of the figures is uneven with some like the Plateosaurus and Saurolophus being finely detailed, like resin figures, while the feathered Gigantoraptor is a caricature. Figures have no names stamped on them; you are left to match them against their portraits. They have the Battat disease, irregular and deformed limbs due to a rubbery medium and early mold release. Anecdotal comments indicate the concept is not taking off in the UK. Dino King and Predators have already been there. The figures seem overpriced compared to the samesized and better-prepared Safari Toob figures. The animals are gray, silver, brown, or green with highlights painted on teeth, mouth, or eyes. The lack of full painting hides the details in the better figures. I like the idea, if not the execution. I think providing collectable cards that tie in to a popular game like Tusk or Saurian Safari would be an easy win for a company or third party. It would add value to the product at little cost and build product identity.
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RIGHT: The 6” Marx cavemen figures came in various shades of color and amounts of shine to the plastic.
LEFT: This pre-1970s three inch box holds a theropod-
like dinosaur “Tyrannosaurus” figure in three different versions/sizes. The box lid has a crown shaped sticker that reads “Genuine Bone China” and a tiny sticker on one figure reads, “Bone China Japan.”
BELOW: Multiple’s Skeletura Tyrannosaurus rex, a super rare dinosaur model kit, especially mint in the box;. This huge 1960s model was made up up a wood “skeleton” with paper wrapping and added plastic detail parts. Factory built and painted versions were also used as advertising in toy and hobby stores.
ABOVE: Great, original newspaper comic
strips. The top one is from 1934 and has “interesting” descriptions of dinosaurs. The lower is “Believe It Or Not” from 1943.
RIGHT : On top of their
popular soft plastic Flintstones play set in 1961, Marx produced this smaller set with hard plastic painted figures including many of their dinosaurs, several of which I showed in this column a couple of issues back. These are tough to find today. ABOVE: A beautiful 1960s ad for Red Rose Tea in Canada and their set of prehistoric animal trading cards painted by Rudolph Zallinger, available in each package.
BELOW: Three views of 1970 Deaton Museum Studio Baby Triceratops Dinosaur Casting. 2 3/8 Inches Wide, 1 1/4 Inches Tall, made out of Resin. Norman Neal Deaton is a talented artist who created work for many museums. Learn more about him at www.ndeaton.com. Be sure and see all of his work there. It will amaze you, especially his botanical sculptures.
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Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
ABOVE: Old German Bisque porcelain Stegosaurus - 6" x 3
& 1/2". Mark on the belly is the crowned "S" from manufacturer Scheidig & Cie. Gräfental Thuringia, Germany
LEFT: Do you remember wooden puzzles as a
kid? This Brontosaurus puzzle is from the 1960s & produced by the Judy Instructo Company
ABOVE: Lost World 1925 movie trading card
set c.1930 and is apparently a premium from packages of chocolate in Spain
RIGHT: Finding vintage Marx dinosaur fig-
ABOVE: I thought the graphics on this 1920s tomato crate label from San Diego, Ca were fantastic and wanted to show them to you too.
ures in rare colors can be a challenge but a nice addition to your collection. Many collectors know about the pot bellied T. rex, Kronosaurus & Brontosaurus having been occasionally produced in Metallic Green and silver, but finding the smaller figures in these colors is even tougher like this Trachodon in silver from Fred Snyder’s collection. Fred is also happy to report that he completed his set of all six of the American Museum of Natural History dinosaurs in the rare bronze color shown here.
ABOVE: In the late 1950s, Nabisco Wheat Honeys and Rice Honeys Cereal gave away a free plastic dinosaur toy in every box of their cereal. The red or
green plastic figures were highly popular and many adults remember them from their childhood to this day. Famous paleontologist Philip Curry has said it was this toy that first interested him in dinosaurs as a kid. We have shown one of these in PT before but when a second one came along, I wanted to show it again. This is a wooden mock-up of the original cardboard cereal box. A Nabisco salesperson would tote this around to grocery stores, etc to let people know about the promotion. When unsnapped, the front of the box opens to show the complete set of all ten dino toys. All sides of the box were true to the graphics that were on the actual cereal boxes. An awesome collectible but how this has survived for 55 years is anyone’s guess. Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
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The PEABODY MUSEUM
As you enter, you can gaze to your upper right to the famous mural “The Age of Reptiles” painted single-handedly by Rudolph Zallinger in 1947. Although consisting of an outdated view of dinosaurs, this large masterpiece highlights a time capsule from the Late Carboniferous Period all the way to the end of the Cretaceous Period. It was even featured on the cover of Life magazine a few years after its completion. It’s also hard to miss some of Marsh’s Jurassic skeletal specimens in the middle including a complete Apatosaurus, a juvenile Camarasaurus, a Camptosaurus, and finally my favorite, Stegosaurus. All of these fossils has been collected and named by Marsh. However he did make a few mistakes. He put the wrong skull on Apatosaurus, which turned out to be from a Camarasaurus, so in 1988, the skull was replaced with an actual apatosaur one. Another mistake was that he had the Stegosaurus specimen depicted with 8 thagomizers (tail
By Alexander Kleine Torosaurus sculpture out front
[email protected]
Back in the year 1866 in the city of New Haven, Connecticut, a young paleontologist asked his wealthy philanthropist uncle George Peabody to fund Yale University $150,000 to build a new museum. A few years later, he turned this faculty into a “scientific-military base” (I thought it would be a cool term) in his dinosaur-hunting crusade against his arch-goateed nemesis Edward Cope. Because of the Bone Wars, OC Marsh would be forever remembered for bringing forth some of our most favorite dinosaurs and his personal infamy against his rival and I’ve got to admit Marsh did leave an awesome museum behind for the public. I’m actually a volunteer at the Peabody Museum and my job is to present fossils like a T. rex tooth to vis-
“Age of Reptiles” Mural
spikes), while in actuality the dinosaur only had 2 pairs of them on its tail. There is also a giant sea turtle Archelon at the end of the hall. First collected in South Dakota in 1895, this complete and interesting specimen has only three flippers. In my opinion, this old turtle was the victim of a mosasaur or shark attack. Hovering above it is the giant 13 foot Cretaceous fish Xiphactinus. At the sides of the room are a complete leatherback turtle skeleton, some crocodile specimens, Hesperornis, and a complete mosasaur Platecarpus (nice to have behind a glass frame when you’re volunteering at the Fossil Cart!) Another main attraction in the museum is displayed at the end of the hall; the Peabody’s favorite star, Deinonychus. Please note two interesting things about the exhibit. First of all, one Deinonychus is actually jumping through the air like it’s going to land on the side of a Tenotosaurus. However, since some paleontologists have recently suggested that raptors used their claws like today’s birds of prey, jumping on their prey from high places instead of hunting in packs and ganging up on their large prey, this view of predatory
Entrance to the Great Hall
itors. I’ve worked there for four years and I thought it would be a cool idea to write an article on the Peabody Museum, from the viewpoint of someone who actually works there. Who knows? Maybe it’ll be the beginning of my new writing career at Prehistoric Times! But for now, lets just say I’m a guest writer. Now to begin… Before you enter the museum, you can visit the new Cretaceous Garden installed last fall along with the giant Torosaurus sculpture perched on a two-story granite block roaring towards Whitney Avenue. If the sidewalk bores you, the dinosaur pathway through the garden is just for you. This long stone pathway, embedded with molded dinosaur footprints of a young theropod cuts across the garden filled with foliage that dominated the time period including Japanese umbrella trees, ginkgoes, and a few cycadeoid fossils.
Deinonychus skeleton
If you’re looking for the real Peabody Museum, check out the Great Hall. 32
Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
behavior has been challenged. I find this sad because I would really love to see a pack of Deinonychus in action rather than see just one pounce on a small mammal from a tree. In my opinion, the latter scenario doesn’t seem to fit in a dramatic Planet Earth-like documentary if it showed dinosaurs being alive today. Anyway, a second raptor is standing with its right clawed foot off the ground which I could have sworn I saw in a painting by paleoartist Luis Rey. Whether he was inspired by this pose to draw his turkeyfaced raptor or not might be a good discussion between fellow “paleogeeks” (yeah, I actually coined that term myself.) Just as the Age of Reptiles symbolizes the old view of dinosaurs as big, scaly monsters (which I would like to call the Dark Ages of Paleontology), I think Deinonychus appropriately represents the beginning of a new chapter of paleontology called the Dinosaur Renaissance engineered by the late paleontologist John Ostrom and his student Robert Bakker. It’s thanks to Deinonychus that we started to believe that dinosaurs were warm-blooded, descended from birds etc and I can’t imagine where the science of paleontology would have turned if Stegosaurus skeleton
Giant Archelon turtle and Xiphactinus fish
cross-sectioned: Smilodon and the dire wolf. The Museum also have a nice insight on horse evolution involving each particular species’ tooth and how it evolved over time. Other big mammals in the hall are the Irish Elk Megaloceros and two great skeletons of the chalicothere Moropus and the bronothere Megacerops.
Deinonychus had never been discovered. Maybe believing that dinosaurs were wiped out by ancient aliens? Alongside Deinonychus, are other dinosaurs including an Edmontosaurus embedded in the wall while the other dinosaur fossils are ceratopsians. Residing near a cross sectioned “Monoclonius” (Centrosaurus) are a few Torosaurus and Triceratops skulls. Now there’s been some controversy recently over whether Torosaurus was its own species or an adult Triceratops and I think the answer isn’t going to come easily. There’s been scant evidence to distinguish accurately Torosaurus from Triceratops and plus there’s the fact that paleontologists in the past have named most every dinosaur they found in the ground as a new species rather than determine if one was a juvenile or sub-adult. In my opinion, I don’t see this debate ending any time soon. If dinosaurs aren’t enough to satisfy your “paleo-geekful” appetite, there’s always room for Cenozoic mammals. In the Hall of Mammalian Evolution, lays another mural painting created by Rudolph Zallinger called the “Age of Mammals.” The first mammal I’d recommend seeing is our mastodon found in Otisville, New York. Some other large mammals displayed nearby are the extinct Uintatherium and the giant camel Titanotylopus. Below the mural are skeletons of the small ground sloth Nothrotherium (which interestingly has a small patch of fur still attached to one of its ribs) and my favorite Pleistocene top predators Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
Deinonychus flesh model
Honesty, I’m a really lucky guy. When I first moved to Connecticut eleven years ago as a child, my parents took me to the Peabody Museum. When I saw that giant Apatosaurus looming over me, I was hooked on dinosaurs for life. Someday I wanted to be one of those people who study these amazing animals and even maybe work in the museum (Ok maybe I’m not Apatosaurus with mural in background working, but still you can’t blame me for trying!) Looking back on those years as a Peabody volunteer now as a senior graduating from high school, I’ve got to admit I’ve come a long way. I’m pretty much ready to begin my career path to being a paleontologist in college thanks to some helpful people in the museum who advised me. I wanted to write this article to show how great the Peabody Museum really is and I’m glad I wrote this article. Many thanks to the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History. All photos taken by permission.
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pine wood base for display. The model comes unpainted, easy to assemble. Some putty work and texturing is needed around the seams before being ready to paint. All Concavenator models are hand cast with Por-A-Kast resin at The Alchemy Works.
What’s New
in review
I asked Sean for a quote about his latest creation and he said, “It was originally meant to be a one-off sculpt for collector Bill Heinrich but he was gracious enough to allow me to have it molded and cast. When designing the sculpt I was going for a hybrid mixture of reptilian and avian features, scientific evidence suggest the possibility of quills or feathers on the arms but I took artistic liberties with much of the rest; the overall look may not be probable but at least plausible.”
By Mike Fredericks
World-renowned paleoartist David Krentz, whose work can be seen in Disney's Dinosaur, Discovery's Dinosaur Revolution, and the Walking With Dinosaurs 3D movie has sent us his 1:40 scale model of Tyrannosaurus rex. David crafted the figure as a three dimensional computer model, allowing the integration of tiny surface textures and tremendous detail. The model is then "printed" as a physical piece, and cast in resin. This stunning model captures the might and majesty of the tyrant king. It will arrive in seven parts (no base.) Dave made amazing T. rex sculptures and other prehistoric animals when he was carving by hand but now with the advantage of sculpting utilizing the computer, the details are incredibly minute, tight and realistic in scale. Like all resin kits, this model ships dissembled and unpainted, and may require some slight cleanup. It is cast to order, a meticulous process which may take several weeks before the final model is ready to ship. Price is $99.99. The length is a little over a foot long. Next up, David is releasing Kosmoceratops and Majungasaurus in 1:40. Order your copy plus so many other cool dino items from www.dansdinosaurs.com
For a very new and original dinosaur model to add to your collection pick up a copy of Sean Cooper’s Concavenator. Cost is $108.00 plus $8.50 for shipping and handling within the U.S. Go to David Krentz’s www.paleocraft.com/ and be sure to Tyrannosaurus rex click on “in the works” to see the resin kit amazing sculpting Sean is doing. I promise you will be amazed. We received not one but two of the latest new models from Sideshow Collectibles. “Parasaurolophus Herd: The Crossing” model is created by a company called "Styles on Video"; Sideshow is the distributor for the piece, so it's not part of their own Concavenator corcovatus by Sean Cooper
Concavenator corcovatus, the strange humpbacked theropod dinosaur from the early Cretaceous of Spain is the subject of extremely talented sculptor Sean Cooper. The fossil of this predatory dinosaur includes signs of both feathers and scales and some artists are showing it with quill-like feathers on its strange hump and continuing down its back. Anyone familiar with Sean’s work doesn’t need to have me tell you how wonderful it is and this latest is every bit as wonderful as his previous work. You can almost hear the screaming this dinosaur appears to me doing as it runs along in search of its prey. So much time and skill was put into the feather and skin detail. You could stare at it appreciatively for an hour. I dry fit the parts together and they fit just great. Concavenator is approx. 1/18 scale, 13.5 inches in length, a 9 piece cast, body, lower jaw, tail, arms, dorsal scutes and with separate quills. It also comes with extra quills. Included is a super detailed terrain base with a marked footprint for easy positioning and an oval 34
Dinosauria line. Like all Sideshow models, the model arrives fully painted. Some minor assembly (that requires no gluing) is usually required but you need no modeling skills. This new polystone diorama portrays a group of no less than four Parasaurolophus dinosaurs thrashing through the water, butting against each other to reach the shoreline. This detailed diorama features the grace and power of the Parasaurolophus herd, young and Sideshow Collectibles Stegosaurus
Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
old together, as it makes its way across a river, desperately continuing its journey to find food. The muddy water churns as the dinosaurs rush to reach the shore. Who knows what predators might wait beneath the water’s surface. The wrinkly detail of the dinosaurs’ skin and the meticulous work required to create the churning water make for very impressive sculpting. The dinosaurs have somewhat of an “old school” look to them which I know many of you like. This large scale diorama is an outstanding and detailed addition to any collection. It is 13" H x 10" W x 22" D The price of this very limited edition is $299.99. The second model is Sideshow Collectible’s Stegosaurus Exclusive Edition which includes a Stegosaurus skull. This is a numbered, limited edition of only 150.Sideshow Collectibles is proud to bring you this latest addition to Sideshow's Dinosauria line, the Stegosaurus Maquette, and they should be proud. It is a great representation of this ancient animal of the Jurassic Period. This is another highquality polystone, hand finished and hand painted model. Presenting mother and child as they traverse the ancient forests, the Stegosaurus Maquette is an impressive museum quality piece, an outstanding addition to any display.
New from www.skyhookmodels.com Ray Harryhausen’s “It Came From Beneath the Sea.” Sculpted by Joe Laudati & Dave Bengel. 9” tall. $75.95 postpaid - Please check it out at the site listed above.
nodosaur dinosaur could stand on its own against predators. David is famous for his tiny details and this latest continues with that incredible tradition. I mean, you simply will not believe your eyes when you see all of the individual scale-like protr usions that Dave Dave Silva’s new Sauropelta is sculpts. With shown with his all of this close-up work, I feel sorry for your eyes, Dave! It’s separate Acrocanthosaurus detailed base includes a cycad tree. It is fine standing alone but is designed to connect to David’s Acrocanthosaurus model. model to create a fight scene. Please see Dave’s ad on page 46 of this issue plus my interview with him too.
Two views of David Silva’s Sauropelta (painted and unpainted)
Mike Evans has been a model designer and caster since before this magazine existed. He has even tried his hand at The last Sideshow dinosaur we sculpting himself but nowadays he usually hires the finer reviewed was artist Jorge Blanco’s awesome Apatosaurus. It was huge and sculptors of America to create his amazing models. The Aurora model comnow the Parasaurolophus herd is also a large model but this Stego tops pany had a line of plastic prehistoric animal kits in the 1970s that included them all in size. Again, it was Jorge Blanco who created this new Stego. bases they stood on, that would connect with each other to create a huge dioJorge takes great pride in his artistry and his scientific accuracy so you can rama if you collected them all. The popular model line ended far too early rest assured the sculpting is unbelievably great and the science is correct. and many people were left wanting more. Well, Mike Evans and his We all remember the scutes sticking out of the sides of Stego as kids. Jorge Alchemy Works Company have been making their dreams come true for has those here. The plates and spikes are years now and answer the question, “What if Aurora had made more gigantic and very realistic and of course Prehistoric Scenes kits?” You have seen me review many of their resin preJorge remembered the pebbly layer under historic animal kits here. What is Mike’s latest you ask? We were sent the the neck that the Denver Museum discov- giant Aurora ‘What If’ Spinosaurus resin conversion kit designed for the ered on Stegos a few years back. old Aurora T. rex model kit. Sculpted by Jeff Johnson, this is an 11 piece Stegosaurus was my late co-writer Riff bubble free casting that includes a cool Spino head with movable jaw, huge Smith’s favorite dinosaur as I know it is for 3 piece volcanic base including tree and small dinosaur and nameplate. The many of you. Well, Riff would have loved skin texture is perfectly replicated to match the T. rex kit that Aurora made this as much as I do and in the 70s so you can seamlessly build Another view of Sideshow Collectibles’ you will too. this to be the Spinosaurus that Aurora Aurora What If Stegosaurus with skull. Price is $349.99 should have made. This conversion Spinosaurus Check out requires the Aurora rex kit to create resin conversion www.sideshowyour Spinosaurus but of course the kit for T rex collectibles.com Monogram/Revell reissued version or model kit the very recent Atlantis kit will work The latest Prehistoric Scenes just fine too. $149.95. Check out from Creative thealchemyworks.com or call 817-471Beast studio is 9096 here! Sculptor David Silva’s 1/30th scale And lastly, Jeff Bonzek creates beauSauropelta with baby tiful, custom wooden stands to display and it is ultra detailed. your models. Check out his ad on page With enormous spikes 47. on its shoulders, armored back and whipping tail, this More dinosaur figure reviews on page 37 Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
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Frozen Moments • The Art of the Diorama with Ron Lemery Giganotosaurus Fig. 3
As I’ve stated before, your diorama should tell a story. Here Max Salas’ 1:35 Giganotosaurus races through the Cretaceous countryside, intent on some errand. But the real story is the tree, which has endured a massive lightning strike and has managed to survive. For this issue of PT, I thought we’d review some concepts. One is the idea of symmetry vs balance. In symmetry, you can have one military tank on the left side and another on the right. With balance, you have a tank on one side and 5 soldiers on the other. Both can work, but balance is often
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more interesting. Here the tree gives balance to the figure. We, in the west, read from left to right, so the eye will usually come to rest on the right side, so you might want to make that side more interesting. This isn’t a hard and fast rule, but keep it in mind. You may want to also avoid what photographers call “centritis”: putting your subject right in the center of view. Further, you can arrange things to guide the eye from one interest-point to another. Fig. 1 And although it doesn’t show up in photographs, I find that when looking at real models of animals, those with a more sedentary pose tend to look more real that high-action poses. In nature, animals often pause in movement rather than being in constant motion. When it comes to your base, simple ratios such as 12in by 16in are more visually appealing. And speaking of appealing, don’t overuse blood in your scene. It can quickly become amateurish. Also, a Fig. 2. scale of 1:35 calls for slightly muted colors, tending towards the pastel. Bright and garish colors will only work for automobile models. I don’t have any in-progress photos of the tree, but the technique was covered in Issue #97. The shards were made from broken popsicle sticks (Fig. 1). Although it doesn’t show up well, the living segment is slightly greener than the dead. The base required planning, both to anchor the tree and to insert one of the two metal rods which would hold the figure (Fig 2). The other rod, of slightly smaller diameter, is inserted into the foot. I won’t go into all the details of the paint scheme, except to say that for such a huge beast I thought I’d keep the colors conservative (Fig 3). There you have it. Next time we’ll talk about modeling shallow water. See you then! Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
Our good friends at Safari Ltd sent samples of their 2012 Safari Ltd clear plastic container holds about ten prehistoric animal figures Brachiosaur within a certain category. You can get Prehistoric Crocodiles, prehistoric animal figures to PT. The star of their Prehistoric Sea Life, Prehistoric Sharks, and even a set of new offerings is the Carnegie Museum series Safari Ltd Dinosaur Skulls. These are well done and accurately accomBrachiosaurus. This long-necked plant-eating Ceratosaur plished 2” figures of animals that no one else offers. dinosaur lived during the Jurassic Period, in Consequently, I really have to hand it to the Safari Ltd corporawestern North America. Authenticated by the tion for taking a big chance on these unusual choices for prodpaleontologists of the Carnegie Museum of ucts as they surely have made a lot of us dino geeks very happy. Natural History, this licensed scale model is The Schleich Company of Germany (also with a Canadian office) designed to reflect the latest scientific research. Because has produced 12 new prehistoric animal figures for their 2012 line, the animal had to take in so much plant material in a day, some are upgrades while others are new. One can clearly see that the it is now thought that Brachiosaurus ate from ground level plants as well as treetops. Therefore, paleontologists Safari Ltd Acrocanthosaur Schleich group is not resting on their laurels and simply recycling what they have created in the past. The majority of these dozen new now say that the animal held its neck more parallel to the ground than earlier thought and Safari shows that. For a couple of decades, prehistoric animal figures show strides and leaps toward much more accuthe largest dinosaur toy in everyone’s collection has been Safari Ltd’s origi- rate and realistic animals. This is a group of large figures and include the nal and iconic Brachiosaurus. It has long been a beloved giant dino that no Schleich Apatosaurus, Allosaurus, Brachiosaurus, Giganotosaurus, Quetzalcoatlus, Saichania, Spinosaurus, toy theropod could bring down, but it was time for an update; more scien- Parasaurolophus, tifically accurate and better detailed. Good bye old friend. The king is dead Stegosaurus, Triceratops, Tyrannosaurus Rex, and Velociraptor. They - long live the king. With its new color pattern of red and green, I can’t help are all beautiful figures but their quality can vary somewhat. I hold all 12 but be reminded of Christmas, but what’s wrong with that? I love Christmas. figures here in the PT offices and here is my opinion on the quality breakFinely hand painted with up to 25 steps, this model is phthalate and lead down. Quetzalcoatlus is a very realistic flying figure with a furry coating and free. The scale of the Brachiosaurus is 1:50 and measures 18.5”L x 7”H. blue tinted wings with a pattern that looks something In the Wild Safari line, Safari Ltd’s new “Harry like the flying creatures in the movie, Avatar. This One of Hallmark’s 2012 Christmas Potter” dinosaur is also colorful with green and red. This is a horned headed pachycephalosaur-like dinosaur. ornaments is this T. rex. Let’s hope this is the pterosaur that was as large as a WW2 fighter plane and beginning of a dino series. is a favorite of mine among the new line. Dracorex Hogwartsia was named after Hogwarts Brachiosaurus is portrayed with pebbly skin texture Castle in the films. This is a detailed, well done figure in a monotone brown while Apatosaurus receives a that looks just like all of the 2D restorations I have seen two-tone, brown camo scheme with creased, wrinkly of the animal.. skin. Both figures have a bit of the “old school” look to The Wild Safari® Dinosaurs & Prehistoric Life them, possibly not picking up on some the latest scienVagaceratops is a fairly recently discovered ceratopian tific findings. The popular Parasaurolophus combines dinosaur with a very odd shaped frill on its neck that is pebbly and wrinkly skin with camouflage and dryalmost flat on the top. I once saw a Japanese publication that illustrated the heads of about 25 different ceratopian dinosaurs all lined brushing on top of its head. This is a rather nice looking figure. If I’m not mistaken, with the exception of a new moveable jaw and new up and it really brought to mind the amazing diversity of these dinosaurs; and that’s just the species we know about. This is another beautiful little paint, the Allosaurus is not vastly different from Schleich’s old version, which is a shame as this makes this my least favorite of the group. The shape toy/sculpture that will make a nice addition to your collection. Also very cool from the Wild Safari series are two meat-eating dinosaurs, of the head on this famous Jurassic predator is just too short and wrongly Ceratosaurus and Acrocanthosaurus. World famous paleontologist sloped to me. The new T. rex, on the other hand, looks awesome! I’ve seen Robert Bakker has often claimed his love for Ceratosaurus and has called this look for rex elsewhere, I think, but “me likey” all the same. The jaw it his favorite dinosaur. When you read reviewer Randy Knol’s column in moves too. The set also includes a very solid looking Triceratops, a tiny, armored this issue, you’ll see that he is excited about this new figure and with good reason. It’s fossils are rarely found, but known from the western US, this Saichania (whatever happened to placing Ankylosaurus in sets like this?) Jurassic theropod had horns over its eyes but a larger, blade-like one on its and a small Stegosaurus. As Schleich had recently already produced a new snout that it is really known for. Most of us grew up loving this dinosaur Giganotosaurus, they basically just changed the paint scheme on it and from seeing it (inaccurately) fight a Triceratops in Ray Harryhausen's gave it a moveable jaw and Voila, a 2012 Giganotosaurus! The last two figures rounding out the group are two favorites among many dino fans movie "One Million Years B.C." to reading about it in Schleich T. rex and Raptor today made popular by the Jurassic Park films, Spinosaurus and Turok, Son of Stone comics. Too often, toy companies Velociraptor. Both now have moveable jaws. The “raptor” has a have basically taken a T. rex and placed a horn on its nose decidedly JP look to it and looks fine. The Spinosaurus is a big, tan to create a Ceratosaurus but of course the animals have dinosaur figure with detailed, etched skin. “Kids” of all ages will love very different skulls and Safari Ltd has gotten that right. it and all of these attractive new figures. This is a fine, new figure that you need to pick up and News about Bullyland comes to us from dansdinosaurs.com. enjoy for yourself. Bully is reissuing a number of their prehistoric animal figures, Texas and Oklahoma could not be more proud of their mostly their mammals and early man but collectors will be interresident, even though he hasn’t walked there for over a ested to hear that the rare Mastodonsaurus amphibian is availhundred million years. Acrocanthosaurus was an awesome able again after a long absence. Of course the reissue of figures predator with a high ridged back. We’ve known about Acro for is good news for the “have-nots” who want to add the figure to a lot less time than Cerato but it is already loved by many. I their collection without spending a fortune but bad news for will never forget the beautiful skeleton I saw of it once. Safari those who already have the figure that used to be worth a lot of Ltd. gets the look of it right and paints it with a two-tone dark brown in the upper area to lighter brown as we move toward the belly - money. Dan sent us the following list, Dryopithecus, Australopithecus, another exciting new addition for 2012! Homo Habilis, Homo Erectus, Homo Neanderthalensis, Homo Sapiens, Probably more for kids, but also check out Wild Safari® Dinosaurs & Woolly Rhino, Task Elephant (Deinotherium), Cave Bear, Early Giant Prehistoric Life Baby in an Egg. Several different baby dinosaurs make up Predator (Andrewsarchus), Giant Sloth (Megatherium), Giant Mammoth, the series like Stegosaurus that come in a three inch long hard plastic, two- Predatory Ratite (Diatryma), Claw Animal (Chalicotherium), Giant Deer piece egg. (Megaloceras), Saber Tooth Cat (Eusmilus), Ancient Horse (Anchitherium), And lastly, you’ve got to be excited about Safari Ltd’s Toobs! Each large, Saber Tooth Tiger, Mastodon (Gomphotherium), and Mastodonsaurus. Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
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The new HMNS Hall of Paleontology in Texas
I received two, rather different, nicely written articles describing the opening of the new Paleontolgy Hall at the Houston Museum of Natural Science and thought you might enjoy reading both, as I did - editor Inostrancevia
By Asher Elbein Houston’s Museum of Natural Science opened its new Hall of Paleontology to much fanfare over the weekend, trumpeting its size and spectacle. Since I happened to be in town, I thought I’d stop in and see how the hall measures up to the hype. The new hall is huge, nearly 30,000 square feet. The space is used very well, with the visitor directed along a winding path that allows each showpiece to be a surprise. The exhibit is organized into a series of set pieces, often a central mount with various smaller fossils sitting in glass cases along the walls. The displays were very well lit and the descriptive text was both informative and discreet, which is a neat trick. On the whole, the design sensibility for the new hall was quite good, and a welcome change from the “row of skeletons” approach that tends to crop up in large museums. The exhibit path begins in the Cambrian with a display of trilobites. The display is extensive–all kinds of strange varieties of trilobite are featured, the fossils as delicate looking as if they’d been sculpted by hand. Models of Anomalocaris and tube worms sit next to a clever “aquarium” fixture that showed various
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The Permian section features a stunning life-sized Dimetrodon sculpture by Keith Strasser, in addition to Eryops, a Dimetrodon skeleton, and a running gorgonopsid called Inostrancevia (a personal favorite, and something I was very excited to see.) The Triassic section includes a dueling Postosuchus and Desmatosuchus, as well as a Placerias being ambushed by a phytosuchian of some sort. From there the path leads through a section on Jurassic oceans, complete with Rhamphorhynchus, Plesiosaurus, assorted teleost fish, and a mother Ichthyosaur with seven embryonic skeletons nestled in her bones. The Jurassic installation opens with an Allosaurus attacking a rearing Stegosaurus, a Diplodocus looming in the background. A small alcove to one side showcases casts of Caudipteryx and Sinosauropteryx, which make for a nice change from the original gallery (where, entertainingly, it had been stated categorically that birds and dinosaurs were clearly not related.)
The Cretaceous section is the showstopper, though, and here the hall opens up into a large area to allow for the multiple huge skeletons on display. Three huge Tyrannosaurus battle with a Triceratops (complete with the skin impressions we’ve been hearing so much about) an irritated-looking nodosaurid, Tyrannosaurus vs. Nodosaurid and most impressively, a family of giraffe sized Quetzelcoatlus. Off to one side a Gorgosaurus sniffs at a cast of the Leonardo hadrosaur mummy, while a pair of Edmontosaurus edge off in the background. Finally, an Acrocanthosaurus and Deinonychus round off the Early Cretaceous section. Tylosaurus, Clidastes, Archelon, and various fish and ammonites can be seen in the Cretaceous Ocean portion as well. The new hall is worth visiting for that section alone; it’s seriously impressive.
Australopithecus
All photos on this page by Asher Elbein
a little rushed, but at their best they were very evocative and helped bring some welcome color to the otherwise white walls.
computer generated fauna from the Cambrian. Moving through the Ordovician and Devonian brings crinoids, fossilized sharks, and the first of several murals by Julius Csotonyi depicting various animals in the exhibition. These are generally excellent–I found a few to look
Finally, the Cenozoic features a short selection of “greatest hits” from the remaining epochs. Diatryma kicks at a charging Uintatherium, while various stunningly well preserved Eocene fossils hang in the background. A tusked Rhinoceros, Metamynodon, scraps with a fossil elephant, while a Platybelodon swims away from the immense jaws of the shark Megalodon. A short display of Oreodonts later, and we’ve reached the Pleistocene gallery with it’s Mastodon, Smilodon, Glyptodon, Short Faced Bear, and Giant Ground Sloth. A short hall of human evolution rounds out the hall, displaying skulls, assorted bones, and some life sculptures of various ancestors with (surely unintentional) comic expressions. I can pick a few nits with the new hall–the fact that the Deinonychus’ hands are pronated is pretty ridiculous, especially since none of the other theropod mounts in the hall have the same mistake–but on the whole I really can’t recommend the new hall highly enough. It’s informative, dynamic, and exciting. If you’re in the area, you owe it to yourself to go see it. Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
Dakota’s Black Hills Institute.
New action-packed paleohall opens in Houston by Brian Ford Not a lot of museums would portray a Paleolithic hunter being tossed into the air by an angry Mastodon, a swimming Platybelodon about to become a meal for a Megalodon shark, no less than three T-Rex’s and what would appear on first glance to be a dancing stegosaur.
Oh yes, the dancing stegosaur mentioned earlier is actually rearing up on its two hind legs as a threatening allosaur approaches.
This exhibit shows the pitfalls of hunting mastodons
The Houston Museum of Natural Science’s new Texas-sized Hall of Paleontology opened on June 2 and features some of the more action-packed fossil exhibits to be found anywhere. Armed with lavish contributions from corporations and individuals, the museum spent $85 million on the 30,000 square-foot hall. It contains more than 60 major mounts, featuring more than 30 dinosaurs as well as large mammals - all action poses, according to the museum. It also includes sumptuous murals by paleoartists Julius Csotonyi and Viktor Deak. Associate Curator David Temple says the goal of the designers was simple: “When you walk in the door, you would say ‘I’ve never seen that before.’ Also featured are some 130 trilobite fossils reflecting a wide range of adaptations, a “killer ammonite collection” says David, which depict their full range, coprolites, ichthyosaurs, sabertooths and bears, oh my. Renowned paleontologist and curator Bob Bakker put his imagination to work, with his drawings being used as the basis for many of the exhibits, according to Temple. As a result, extinct critters gallop, swim and fly across the paleohall.
Visitors stare at Neanderthal and he stares right back
One of the stars is “Wyrex,” which has the best-preserved hands and feet of any Tyrannosaurus Rex ever found, as well as small patches of skin impressions. Their Triceratops known as “Lane” also includes swatches of mummified skin. An Eryops named “Otis” is depicted in swimming mode, and “Willi,” a Texas-grown Dimetrodon fossil, will soon be installed. Many of the exhibits were prepared by museum staff and volunteers, as well as South Stegosaurus struts its stuff near the new paleohall entrance.
“That’s right kid, a little closer - just a little closer....” Keith Strasser’s Dimetrodon sculpture
Quetzalcoatlus and Tyrannosaurus rex yuk it up during a sneak preview of the new HMNS Hall of Paleontology
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Oreodonts
by Phil Hore
[email protected]
With a bellow the Eporeodon twists, its powerful neck muscles wrenching its thick head free from its attacker’s grip. Its skull is so thick that, without the proper purchase, the predator’s teeth lose grip and the herbivore escapes with a head flick and little more than superficial gashes, wounds that will heal given time. With room now to move, the Oreodont turns and gives the predator a good whack with that same stone-hard head, before turning and galloping away, leaving a bewildered monster behind shaking itself off and wondering what exactly had just happened.
© Frederik Spindler www.frederik-spindler.de/news-infos.html The Eporeodon lowers its head, its broad snout pushing aside thorny brambles, and its large teeth making short work of the tough fibrous weeds that would soon be replaced by true grasses. About it are the great northern forests that would also start retreating in the future as grass increased and the region grew devoid of life as the badlands dried out.
Joseph Leidy is somewhat of a forgotten man of American paleontology. The senior of both Cope and Marsh, it was their feud, as much as their deep pockets, that pushed Cope’s former mentor out of the field. With two tycoons spending substantial family fortunes at an alarming rate, Leidy found himself outbid on almost every bone unearthed in the mid-west, yet his substantial work before the ‘bone-wars’ had left its mark on the science, especially when it came to the United States’ bizarre prehistoric mammals. © David Hicks
The size of a cow, but with far smaller legs and a stubbier, elongated body, the Oreodont continues feeding, never noticing it was no longer alone. From a nearby bush, where it has been patiently waiting for the feeding herbivore to munch its way closer, a hunting Hyaenodon barrels out of its cover and leaps onto the head and neck of the Eporeodon. The predator’s huge jaws clamp down over the herbivore’s head in a mighty bite, yet if the carnivore was under the impression this fight was over, it was very wrong. © Jennifer Borst
Leidy had earlier found some fossils along the Rocky Mountains, which he dubbed Oreodont or ‘Mountain Tooth’. Little could he know these fossils would become one of the most common in the US. If there’s a group of animals you could call generic, it has to be the Oreodonts. Appearing during the Eocene- a time when many of the worlds’ © Kevin Hedgpeth
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GER: To the great, gut wrenching mirth of my girlfriend (and apparently a lone hiker moving through the area), I discovered the hard way that the boards making up this trail are extremely slippery when covered with ice and snow. There is now a Phil-sized crater on the trail after my feet went from under me- and kind of proves the point I make in the Giganotosaurus article. Even a huge lump of a lad such as myself, with my feet gone and trying to save my camera, still managed to fall in a way I didn’t get hurt…mostly. Purely an American family, the geographic isolation of the Oreodonts could explain why there’s none alive today. Camels, cheetahs, horses, rhinos and a bunch of other mammals, all got their start around the same time in North America, and all moved on when land bridges formed and connected Europe and Asia to the Continent. All would go extinct in the US after the Ice Age, but survive into the modern world because they’d migrated…all, that is, except the Oreodonts. This all leads to a vexing question. If they weren’t faster, bigger, badder or smarter than everyone else, why did they become so numerous? Could it be that being unspecialized led to their success? Well it wouldn’t be the first time as, if you look in a mirror you’ll spot another mammal that was never
© Russell J Hawley major mammal groups were being established- while the others grew and adapted, the Oreodonts remained true to their origins. They never grew longer legs like a horse, never produced fearsome horns to defend themselves like deer and antelope. In fact the only interesting fact about the Oreodonts was their numbers as they’ve literally been found by the tens of thousands (thanks to numerous mass mortality sites) - so many the layer of soil they’re found in is known as the [Turtle] Oreodon beds…
© Russell J Hawley
…ok, it’s not really that interesting a fact, which I think says a lot about the group. I got the chance to drive South Dakota last year with my long suffering girlfriend, and visited just as winter was approaching and found we had the place all to ourselves thanks to the weather. Though still passable, there were days when we battled snow, close encounters with the local wildlife (which prefers walking along roads during these times) and heartbreaking closures to a number of parks and attractions. When we entered the Badlands National Park, where many Oreodont fossils have been found, we were happy to see a light layer of snow, enough to make it pretty, but not enough to bury everything we wanted to see. This was especially true on the fossil trail where you can walk a raised boardwalk and see several fossil replicas in the ground the way they’d have looked when originally unearthed. DAN© Russell J Hawley
the fastest, biggest or baddest either, yet humanity now rules the planet in numbers most other species could never dream of. Though rather boring physically, the Oreodonts did manage to evolve pig and goat-like forms- for a while it was even believed there had been a hippo-like species. Today Leptauchenia, originally thought to live a semi-aquatic lifestyle as their eyes and nostrils were placed high on their skulls, probably lived more like a camel as their fossils are found amongst ancient sand dunes. This oddly makes sense as camels are likely their closest relatives today, and after all this there’s been a change of heart as Promerycochoerus remains seem to indicate that a few Oreodonts did live like a hippo. There’s even a suggestion some smaller species tunneled, a hypothesis backed up by fossil burrows with Oreodont remains (Miniochoerus) buried at the end. One may simply have been a case of the remains being washed into the burrow, but numerous specimens implies behavior, not chance was at play here. It would seem their generic nature meant, with minor changes, Oreodonts produced hippo, goat, pig and burrowing variants. The Oreodonts had four-toed hooves and a tail, while their teeth, specifically their molars, had such high ridges it led to their name ‘Mountain tooth’. They’ve also been split into two
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classifications- the primitive Agriochoeridae and the more advanced Merycoidodontidae- and all make up an early branch of the artiodactyls (even-toed ungulates). More than fifty species have been described, giving you some idea just how common a fossil they are in certain parts of the US, though many of these species have been described more than once. Indeed some checking has revealed a number of these species were recognized by differences in their anatomy due to geological transformation of the remains (being crushed or deformed in the earth) rather than due to any change that occurred during life, and thus may be considered void.
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From North to Central America Oreodonts spread out and became the dominant herbivores of the region for nearly 10 million years. During this time the land went through numerous changes, from dry woodlands to © Russell J Hawley
African-like savannahs, all of which seemed to have suited the hardy little Oreodonts well. This all seems to have changed when the last Ice Age (which we are still currently in) began and the continent froze over. Perhaps unequipped for such a massive climate shift and incapable of adapting to these new conditions, the vast herds of Oreodonts covering the land disappeared by 4 m.y.a, leaving them one of the most successful mammalian groups to go extinct.
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C re t a c eo u s Classifieds Free to subscribers but must be updated each issue Wanted: Jurassic Park 3 Re-Ak Attack Dilophosaurus in original green color. Must still be in package and in good condition. Will pay $200.00. Contact Adam at
[email protected]. Wanted: I am interested in any playvisions animal figures but especially the African Forest Buffalo, Chital (Axis Deer) and Dhole. I am also looking for Jeols Bushpig, Safari Vanishing Wild Gemsbok (adult and calf), and ELC Kob. I would be interested in almost any mammal figures, prehistoric and modern. Please email me at
[email protected], you can call at 801 597 8875 or write to Keith Brown, 3032 S 5990 W, Salt Lake City, Utah, 84128 Wanted: Battat original and/or snowshoe Tyrannosaurus, SRG cavewoman, Flintstones Hunting Party Play Set Tyrannosaurus in green, Papo original version Velociraptor, Wm Otto La Brea Mastodon, Dinosaur Nu Cards: #1, #23, #24, and #67 FOR SALE: Mike Trcic Styracosaurus $1000 + Shipping. Also, any offers on a large and magnificent 1980s Tyrannosaurus that is long out of production made by the Midland Scientific Co? Contact Pat at:
[email protected] For Sale: I am offering the complete U.S. set of 18 Battat dinosaurs, in mint condition with tags. Rex stands! Also, the complete US release of the Invicta (British MNH) set, the complete ROM (Royal Ontario Museum) set, complete Dinosaurs of China in boxes, and the complete early releases (first series through 2001) of the Carnegie Collection with tags, Wild Safari with tags, Safari Habitat Authentics Dinos I, II, and III in boxes, Safari Babies with tags, and miscellaneous older dino Toobs, boxes and retro bags. All mint condition, with tags as noted (some sets did not ship with tags). Also parting with PT issues #84-100. Contact Alan at
[email protected] or (360) 656-6857 For Sale : Complete set of Battat dinosaurs for sale, as a set. I also have one of the few JP full size raptor promotional pieces. This piece is unreal. I'm also downsizing a very large collection of various pieces amassed over 20 years of collecting. I have many unique and extremely hard to find dinosaurs and mammals that are no longer in production. Most of these are sets, all are in mint condition and never used other than for display. Call and or e-mail for more information on what's available.
[email protected] 513-737-6695 Wanted: Safari Ltd "dinosaur mountain" retail counter display. Replica collector looking for 1-3 of these large plastic racks to display ever-growing collection. Are you a museum, gift shop, or fellow collector with an extra one to get rid of? Contact Justin at
[email protected] For Sale or trade: I offer all the large J H Miller prehistoric animals/dinosaurs, caveman, cavewoman and cave. I have many SRG, both large and small, including the caveman, a complete set of Linde dinos, complete set of Battat (Boston Museum) dinos, Castagna dinos, Alva Bronto, Marx, Chialu, Starlux and more. Call Jim Van Dyke 616-669-3897
[email protected] NEW DINO SALES LIST AVAILABLE. JACK ARATA 2940 CONCORD AVE. BRENTWOOD, CA. 94513-4722 OR
[email protected] Attention Museums and collectors – Five original lamps designed by and made for Zdenek Burian's art studio for sale, contact me, Jiri Hochman for photograph, details and prices. Zdenek Burian post cards, posters, coffee cups and copyrights of Burian images for sale. Also looking for a producer/sponsor for: a Zdenek Burian exhibition in the USA/Canada etc ZB Great Monograph for sale in the USA/Canada etc production of copies of ZB original paintings for sale a completely new book (the best of) Zdenek Burian – Action Illustration - website: www.zdenekburian.com or contact
[email protected] WANTED: Max Salas 1/35 Entelodon and Andrewsarchus. Needed for my collection. Will buy or trade. Contact Ron at
[email protected]. WANTED: RAY HARRYHAUSEN & STOP-MOTION RELATED 'ZINES Colossa #1 (1993) / Hollywood Horror
Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
Classics #4 (1996) Cinemagram #1 (1964) / Cinefantastique #2 (Mimeo - Apr 1967) Mystification #6 (1965) / Animals Magazine (Aug 1969) - British Wonder #2 (Summer 1989) / Box Office Vol. 90 #16 (Feb 6 1967) Spectre #18 (Mar/Apr 1968) / Photon #1, 7, 13 (1963, 1965, 1967) Vampire's Crypt #8 (Dec 1963) / Amazing Screen Horrors #6 (1966) Just Imagine #4 (1977) - British / Cosmos Aventuras #9 (May 1964) Ray Harryhausen Journal (1973) / Animation Journal #4 (May 1965) Stop-Motion Monsters of Filmland #1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 9 Japanese (1990’s) King Kong: Unauthorized Jewish Fractals in Philopatry (1996) Contact: Scott McRae (
[email protected]) Wanted: PT issues 1-22 & later back issues no longer available through PT, Marx dinos in metallic green, Pom Poms candy boxes w/ Aurora Prehistoric Scenes art on them, SRG metal Dinychthys fish, Chialu dinos (Italian composition), NF Neoform dinos, La Brea (Wm Otto) Mastodon, both bears, peccary & horse plus T. rex and Brontosaurus, Smithsonian metal prehistoric animals, Messmore & Damon 1933 Chicago World’s Fair metal figs., and Starlux Cephalaspis (jawless-fish) to complete my Starlux set! For Trade/Sale: vintage dinosaurs of most manufacturers. I’ve got a ton of old dinosaur figures for sale. I’m always buying pre-1970s dino collectibles --Please contact Mike Fredericks 145 Bayline Cir, Folsom, Ca 956308077, (916) 985-7986
[email protected] WANTED: Prehistoric Times issues 79, 81, 83, and 84. Also looking for any books, magazines, and/or DVDs on whale evolution/extinct whales/dolphins, ancient marine reptiles, elephant evolution/extinct elephants, and shark evolution/extinct sharks. Will pay by money order only. Also looking for any information on fossils in Alabama, Mississippi, and the rest of the southeastern US. Please call 205-269-7054. FOR SALE: Hundreds of First Day Stamped Covers, thimbles, coins, library books for adults (like new), and hundreds of miniature dinosaur figurines including full set of LLADRO. Jon C Markin, 2688 York Street North, St Petersburg, FL 33710 Responses made to all serious inquiries. Wanted: any ice age animals for sale or trade that were recently available in PT, in a set of six. Interested in the whole set. Please be reasonable. Contact Gregory Ortiz
[email protected] or phone at 714.679.6285 FOR SALE: Invicta Tyrannosaurus, Diplodocus, Brachiosaurus, woolly mammoth, Glyptodon, Dimetrodon, Blue Whale, painted Liopleurodon, and painted Plesiosaurus. Bullyland 1993 Parasaurolophus. Dinotales Series 1 Triceratops skeleton and Tyrannosaurus. Carnegie Collection Beipiaosaurus, Ankylosaurus, Spinosaurus, and Cryolophosaurus. Wild Safari Scutosaurus, Mosasaurus, Kentrosaurus, Allosaurus, Rhamphorhynchus, Coelacanth, and Field Museum Anatotitan. All new 2011 Safari LTD figures are available too. Wanted: Battat Ceratosaurus, Diplodocus, Tyrannosaurus, Maiasaura, and Parasaurolophus - Andrew
[email protected] For Sale: 3/4'” cloisonne lapel pin that states: REUNITE GONDWANALAND and depicts Pangea and Laurasia united in one huge continent. Only a limited number are available. $8 includes the pin and postage. Contact Lynne Dickman, (406) 728-5221,
[email protected] FOR SALE: Horizon 1/19 scale vinyl JP Brachiosaurus kit. Box in good condition, parts still in bag. $125 plus shipping. Kenner JP Triceratops with "dino damage", new in box $40 plus shipping. Horizon 1/30 vinyl Apatosaurus kit new in box $35 plus shipping. Please contact Perry:
[email protected] for information or photos. Wanted: Hobby Trading Post (Nu-Card) DINOSAURS cards (B&W, post-card size) #'s 7, 13, 15, 28. I will gladly purchase these but I also have many duplicate cards available for trade. I would prefer "nice" condition cards (e.g., VG+ to Mint) without major creasing or other significant defects. Please contact me (Mike Riley) at:
[email protected] or at 303-566-1267 (weekdays, 7:00 am to 4:00 pm, MDT). MODELERS: PT build up writer, Sean Kotz, now has a national hobby column on line at the Examiner. I am committed to bringing paleo models, sculptors and kits to the forefront on a regular basis, as well as all other forms of modeling from plastic kits to rocket ships. Go to www.examiner.com and search for "Model Building Examiner" or my name and bookmark or subscribe. You can also search out the Facebook Fan page Playset Magazine Plastic heaven, America's best info on vintage playsets by Marx and others from the Atomic Era and Beyond. Battleground, Zorro, news, classifieds to buy, color glossy. Complete website listings too! www.playsetmagazine.com, email
[email protected], or call (719) 634-7430
For Sale: Horizon 1/19 scale vinyl Jurassic Park Brachiosaur kit. Original box and parts still in poly bag. $125 plus shipping. Dave Colton –
[email protected] WANTED: Invicta Muttaburrasaurus & PlayVision Wild Dogs set. E-mail:
[email protected] (Ronald). J H Miller repaired - your broken and incomplete vintage J H Miller plastic figures -expertly repaired. Ask for Nick Lamanec (484) 274-0315 FOR SALE: Looking for awesome paleontology-themed Tshirts? Visit www.cafepress.com/dannysdinosaurs! Featuring clever dinosaurian designs on everything from shirts to coffee mugs to bumper stickers, www.cafepress.com/dannysdinosaurs is a great place for all your dinosaur apparel needs. TOP DOLLAR PAID for prehistoric animal postcards including diorama scenes, statues, fossils, museum displays, etc. I also would like to purchase prehistoric animal museum or excavation site brochures and posters. If you have vintage dinosaur or prehistoric animal books or photographs from the 1900's up to 1980 please let me know since I also collect these. I have lots of paper ephemera such as this for trade if that is preferable. Please contact Stephen Hubbell (253) 851-7036 or email me at
[email protected]. search4dinosaurs.com is always looking to add new artists. If you are looking to promote your work this is the perfect place to do so. Each image on the site is viewed by hundreds’s and sometimes thousands of visitors each week. Many artists receive commission work from publishers after being seen here.There is no charge, just e-mail 6 or more examples of your art work and I’ll create the gallery page. I only show full body examples of Mesozoic creatures, several in one scene is fine. Level of expertise must match that of the work already being shown on the site. Images should be at least 600 x 400 pixel jpg or gifs, larger is better. For more information
[email protected] PALEOSCENE - Supplying fossils and museum quality fossil replicas at very affordable prices. Our replicas are carefully made from molds of the original fossil specimens.Each cast is meticulously hand painted to give a natural and realistic appearance closely matching the original fossil. Our replicas include many unusual and famous specimens, including Archaeopteryx, Seymouria, pterosaurs and other prehistoric reptiles, mammals, birds, fish, invertebrates (including trilobites), and a variety of dinosaur and pre-dinosaur tracks (will help artists get those feet and footprints right!). "Please visit our website at http://paleo.cc/paleoscene.htm or call 281-290-6751 or write to Glen Kuban, PaleoScene, 11702 Littlefield Ct, Tomball, TX 77377, Email:
[email protected]. PALEODIRECT.COM Your direct source for the finest and rarest fossil specimens along with tools and weapons of primitive man. With several thousand pages of fossils and primitive man artifacts displayed online, PaleoDirect.com is truly one of the largest online paleontological suppliers across the globe. Categories include a BROAD DIVERSITY of both INVERTEBRATE and VERTEBRATE fossils. We also specialize in genuine TOOLS and WEAPONS of PRIMITIVE HUMANS from the Lower PALEOLITHIC through the NEOLITHIC Periods up to and including the Iron Age. PALEO DIRECT, Inc. is a full-time, professional supplier and a member of the American Association of Paleontological Suppliers.We acquire specimens direct from the source regions of the world through exclusive affiliations with the diggers and their management as well as conduct several of our own international collecting expeditions each year. Furthermore, many of our rare specimens are prepared in-house by our own conservation facilities and staff. This explains our consistently better quality fossils than is usually found in the marketplace. In addition to what is shown on the site, an even greater inventory of specimens are either yet to be listed or in various states of preparation. Please contact us if you have interest in an item that is not shown. New material from around the world is constantly being added. If you wish to be added to our email list for when new specimens are updated to the website, please email or call us and let us know. PALEO DIRECT, INC. P. O. Box 160305 Altamonte Springs, FL 32716-0305 (407) 774-1063 www.PaleoDirect.com
[email protected] Supplying museums, educational facilities and discriminating collectors around the world. Sculptor for hire: top quality & accuracy. Will sculpt all prehistoric, wildlife, military, or action figures/heads. Previous work seen/reviewed in PT (see classified ad in PT #27, also PT#59 & Dinotreker.com) Terms fair and flexible. Will also build and paint your kit! For Sale: Kaiyodo 1/35 Dinoland triceratops, 4” resin. Contact Jerry Finney 12419 E 212 St Lakewood, Ca 90715 (562) 809-3235
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Paleonews Illustrations by Mike Fredericks
Late-arriving ads squeezed Paleonews out of the last issue of PT and I apologize for that. Consequently, some of these discoveries may be a bit dated but I thought too important/interesting not to mention in PT nonetheless. In the mean time, we heard about more discoveries than we could dream of fitting here, from the largest fossil croc (27 feet & from Kenya) to the smallest mammoth (4 feet and found on the island of Crete) to the idea that dinosaur gas warmed the planet. There is also a new theory involving dinosaur bone density, etc that is saying that many dinosaurs such as sauropods looked much thinner and even a bit smaller than we normally portray them today. All of these stories can be found on the internet but here are the discoveries we had room for.
Birdlike Dinosaur About to Lay Eggs When Death Struck
coelacanths whose appearance matched the two species alive today. This small fossil has been described as the oldest coelacanth, but the newest fossil evidence, the remains of a skull, date back to almost the same time and contain more definitive features that indicate both it and the Australian fossil were "modern" coelacanths. The discovery reinforces what was already suspected about coelacanths: After a period of rapid diversification long ago, these fish have remained pretty much the same over hundreds of millions of years. In fact, the discovery extends the record for coelacanths with modern-looking bodies back by about 17 million years, according to the researchers, led by Min Zhu of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Coelacanths belong to an ancient group, the lobe-finned fishes, which have fins attached to stalks, rather than directly to their bodies. More than 400 million years ago, the coelacanths are believed to have split off from other lobe-finned fishes, which later gave rise to modern lung fishes and to tetrapods — four-footed animals, including us. So, our closest relatives among fishes are lung fish and the living species of coelacanths.
Warm and fuzzy T. rex? New evidence suggests it.
The discovery of a giant meat-eating dinosaur sportA mysterious birdlike dinosaur was about to lay her ing a downy coat has some scientists reimagining the eggs when she perished some 70 million years ago in look of Tyrannosaurus rex. T. rex has long been what is now Patagonia, researchers have found. The depicted as having scaly skin, but the discovery of an scenario is based on the discovery of two dinosaur eggs earlier relative suggests the king of dinosaurs may have lying near the partial skeletal remains of an had a softer side. alvarezsaurid dinosaur, which was a type of small Approximately life-sized flea fossil The evidence comes from the unearthing of a new maniraptoran, a group of theropod dinosaurs believed tyrannosaur species in northeastern China that lived 60 to be the line that eventually led to modern-day birds. Alvarezsaurids are bizarre among dinosaurs, scientists have said, due to million years before T. rex. The fossil record preserved remains of fluffy their short, massive forelimbs tipped with a single digit sporting a gigantic down, making it the largest feathered dinosaur ever found. If a T. rex relative had feathers, why not T. rex? Scientists say the evidence is trending in claw. The team named the dinosaur Bonapartenykus ultimus in honor of José that direction. Much smaller dinosaurs with primitive feathers have been Bonaparte, who in 1991 discovered the first alvarezsaurid in Patagonia. The excavated in recent years, but this is the first direct sign of a huge, shaggy dinosaur eggs were found less than 8 inches from the partial skeleton and dinosaur. Scientists have long debated whether gigantic dinosaurs lost their seemed to belong to that individual dinosaur. The researchers ruled out a feathers the bigger they got or were just not as extensively covered. postmortem mixing that brought the two together. The partial skeleton was The new tyrannosaur species, Yutyrannus huali translates to "beautiful also articulated, which would likely not be the case if they had been trans- feathered tyrant." A team of Chinese and Canadian scientists analyzed three ferred there after death. well-preserved fossil skeletons, an adult and two juveniles, recovered from a quarry in An alvarezsaurid fossil was After various microscopic analyzes of the China's Liaoning province by a private fossil found with eggs it had laid at the bones and eggs, along with eggshells found in dealer. Most striking were the remains of time of its death. the area, the researchers speculate the two down-like feathers on the neck and arm. eggs, each about 3 inches in diameter, may Though coverage was patchy, scientists sushave been inside the oviducts of the female pected the species had feathers over much of Bonapartenykus when she died. The find its body. appears to be indirect evidence for keeping two eggs in two oviducts. They were close to It would have felt like touching "long, thick being laid if the female had survived. The fur," co-author Corwin Sullivan of the eggshell fragments also contained fossilized Chinese Academy of Sciences said. Thomas fungi; such contamination affects bird eggs Holtz Jr. at the University of Maryland, comtoday too. pared it to the feathers of an emu.
Skull Confirms Older Origin for “Living Fossil” Fish A group of ancient fish, called coelacanths, have changed so little over time they are known as "living fossils." Now, the remains of a skull found in the Yunnan Province of China, confirms these creatures have been around, largely unchanged, for more than 400 million years. Once thought to have died out at roughly the time the dinosaurs disappeared, the first living coelacanth was discovered in a fishing net in 1938 off the eastern coast of South Africa. Since then, others have turned up elsewhere along the coasts of the Indian Ocean. While it's clear their history goes way back, the fossils they left behind have been scarce so far. A lower jawbone, more than 400 million years old and discovered in Australia, hinted at the earliest known emergence of 48
Whatever the coverage of feathers, the latest fossil finds "force us to conceive of tyrannosauroids in a new way," said Julia Clarke at the University of Texas at Austin. The creature lived about 125 million years ago. At 30 feet long and weighing a ton, Y. huali would have reached T. rex's chest.
Ferocious fleas sucked dinosaurs dry Were dinosaurs the original fleabags? Zoologist George Poinar Jr. says they were. But, the insects that feasted on dinosaur blood were several times the size of today's fleas, and had some nasty blood-sucking beaks. "It looks like a syringe when you go to the doctor to get a shot," Poinar said. the pseudo-fleas had long legs and were discovered in China. These disease-carrying demons tortured the dinosaurs, just as they do mammals today and were Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
capable of successfully launching a deadly attack.
U.S. close to seizing disputed dinosaur skeleton At the time this PT went to press, U.S. authorities were pretty sure to seize a 70-million-year-old dinosaur skeleton that was discovered in Mongolia more 65 years ago and now is stored in New York and at the center of an international legal dispute. A federal judge in New York signed a warrant that allows the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to seize the skeleton of the Tyrannosaurus bataar - an Asian cousin of the North American Tyrannosaurus rex - from Dallas-based Heritage Auctions. The seizure will be a "major step forward" for the government of Mongolia, which is claiming sovereign ownership and seeking the skeleton's return. The skeleton - 8 feet tall and 24 feet long - has been stored in crates in New York City since Heritage sold it at auction to an unidentified buyer for more than $1 million on May 20. At the request of the Mongolian government, a U.S. District judge in Dallas issued a restraining order preventing the skeleton from being moved or the ownership transferred while the dispute is pending.
tionship between the two, Senter said. UGS paleontologist Don DeBlieux discovered the specimen in 2005 at Doelling’s Bowl, a rich bone bed Doelling mapped northeast of Arches. The find included several elements of the vertebral column and the pelvis, said co-author Jim Kirkland, the Utah state paleontologist. Also at this site and the nearby Andrew’s Site, in the Yellow Cat element of the Cedar Mountain Formation, scientists recovered pieces of two other raptors that are believed to be new to science. All three specimens are held by the Natural History Museum of Utah. Not enough of these specimens have been recovered to characterize them as new species, however, and UGS plans to return to these sites this summer to hunt for more pieces. The Yurgovuch specimen is the first to emerge from Coelacanth the Doelling’s Bowl, but Kirkland believes the site con“Living Fossil” ceals a trove of unknown Cretaceous life. He predicted it will yield specimens that will be the basis for characterizing as many as six new dinosaur species.
Stubby-armed dino was T. rex of Southern Hemisphere
A newfound giant predatory dinosaur with even Heritage officials have said they will continue to cooperate with authori- stubbier arms than Tyrannosaurus rex may now hint that a vast desert once ties. They say the skeleton was legally obtained and brought to auction by a existed in the heart of a lost supercontinent, potentially barring this carnivore and its kin from spreading across the rest of reputable consignor, "We believe our consignor Homeland Security determined that a T. Bataar fossil the ancient world, researchers say. purchased fossils in good faith, then spent a year recently auctioned in the U.S. must be returned to of his life and considerable expense identifying, When T. rex and its tyrannosaurid relatives Mongolia restoring, mounting and preparing what had predominated as predators in the Northern viously been a much less valuable matrix of Hemisphere in what is now North America and unassembled, underlying bones and bone fragAsia, carnivores known as abelisaurids were the ments," Jim Halperin, co-chairman of Heritage top killers in the Southern Hemisphere on the Auctions, said in a statement. "We sincerely lost supercontinent of Gondwana, which once hope there is a just and fair outcome for all parwas made up of what is now Antarctica, ties." Australia, South America and Africa. Federal officials claim that smugglers made The newfound abelisaurid species, discovered false statements about the fossilized bones when in Patagonia in Argentina, is named they were imported into the United States from Eoabelisaurus mefi, or "dawn Abelisaurus of Britain in 2010. The skeleton did not originate in Britain nor was its value the Museo Palentológico Egidio Feruglio." Based on the nearly complete only $15,000 as claimed, they said. The fossil was discovered in 1946 dur- skeleton, the carnivore was about 21 feet long and lived about 170 million ing a joint Soviet-Mongolian expedition to the Gobi Desert in Mongolia's to 175 million years ago, back when the area was hot and ranged between Omnogovi Province. Mongolia has had laws in place since 1924 prohibiting pronounced dry seasons and extensive rain. The findthe export of dinosaur fossils that are considered ing suggests that abelisaurids, whose origins have New dromaeosaur fossils discovered in Utah national treasures and government property. remained enigmatic, originated at least 40 million are similar to Utahraptor years earlier than previously thought. This meant that Utah’s Cedar Mountain formation abelisaurids existed back when all the continents were yields new raptor dinosaurs united in the supercontinent Pangaea. Utah geologists have discovered what appear to The arms of Eoabelisaurus are not as tiny as those be three new raptor species of dinosaurs based on of later abelisaurids, but they are still unusually small, fossils recovered near Arches National Park. A revealing that shortening of abelisaurid arms began team led by the Utah Geological Survey published very early in their evolution. This reduction apparently a paper describing one of these early Cretaceous started with the lower arm — in Eoabelisaurus, the fossils, which are between 120 and 130 millions upper forelimb is of normal size, but the lower arm is years old. One new species is called Yurgovuchia much shorter in comparison, with a very stunted hand doelllingi in honor of long-time UGS geologist and tiny fingers and claws. Helmut Doelling. It’s a new genus, whose name is The fact that Eoabelisaurus lived about 175 million based on the Ute word for coyote, yurgovuch. This years ago suggests abelisaurids could have spread across the whole of creature was a 35-pound predator, like its familiar namesake canid. Pangaea before it fragmented about 10 million to 15 million years later into Dromaeosaurs, are a diverse group of predators known for stiff tails and Gondwana and Laurasia, the supercontinent once made up of what is now an oversized multi-functional claw rising from the second toe on their hind Europe, Asia and North America. Since abelisaurids were apparently feet. This claw was handy for digging, climbing and fighting, turning these exceedingly rare in the Northern Hemisphere, a natural barrier may have diminutive dinosaurs into formidable predators. Utah formations have yieldprevented their advance northward, researchers suggested. Growing evied several new species in the past two decades. dence from climate models and geological data suggests a huge desert in the Yurgovuchia could be an ancestor to the famous bear-sized Utahraptor, center of Gondwana might have kept abelisaurids from dispersing to the one of the family’s largest members, according to lead author Phil Senter of north. Such a barrier could also explain why other groups of dinosaurs like North Carolina’s Fayetteville State University. Dromaeosaur vertebrate titanosaurs and various prehistoric mammals appear to have been restricted come with bundles of rods that jut out and fuse the tail into one piece. These to Gondwana too, according to the fossil record. rods in Yurgovuchia and Utahraptor appear shortened, suggesting a relaPrehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
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from an armchair or in the field.
Mesozoic Media Dinosaur Paleobiology by Stephen L. Brusatte Paperback: 336 pages Wiley-Blackwell ISBN-10: 0470656581 ISBN-13: 978-0470656587 The study of dinosaurs has certainly been experiencing a remarkable renaissance over the past few decades. Scientific understanding of dinosaur anatomy, biology, and evolution has advanced to a high degree of knowledge. This book provides a contemporary and technical review of dinosaur science intended for students, researchers, and dinosaur enthusiasts, supplemented with vivid photographs and illustrations. This would make for a fantastic dinosaur study school book and perhaps it is used as that at some universities. Stephen Brusatte is a vertebrate paleontologist and PhD student at Columbia University and the American Museum of Natural History. He writes our annual report of the top Paleonews on the year here in PT. Earth before the Dinosaurs (Life of the Past) Sébastien Steyer (Author), Alain Bénéteau (Illustrator), Chris Spence (Translator) $35.00 Paperback: 200 pages Indiana University Press ISBN-10: 0253223806 ISBN-13: 9780253223807 This beautiful volume introduces the incredible animals that populated the planet prior to the Dinosaurs. Readers voyage to a time, beginning about 370 million years ago, when the first four-footed vertebrates appeared, and ending 200 million years later at the moment when the dinosaurs begin their ascent. During this time, vertebrates emerge from the sea creating thousands of new animals, each more astonishing than the last. “Earth before the Dinosaurs” is an entertaining and informative guide to an astonishing and little-known world. This fully illustrated book is packed with colorful art by Alain Beneteau, whose work we have often seen in PT. Indiana University Press is certainly among my favorite publishing houses for “dinosaur” books and we received books from them too late for review this time that will have to wait for our 103rd issue. As they are available now, I wanted you to be aware of them however: “Dinosaurs Under the Aurora”, “Bernissart Dinosaurs,” “The Complete Dinosaur 2nd Ed.” and more. 101 American Geo-Sites You've Gotta See by Albert B. Dickas $24.00 Paperback: 264 pages Mountain Press Publishing Company ISBN-10: 087842587X ISBN-13: 978-0878425877 Rocks racing across a lakebed in Death Valley. Perfectly preserved 36-million-year-old tsetse flies in Colorado. Dinosaur trackways cemented into ancient floodplains in Connecticut. A gaping rift in the Idaho desert. These sites of geologic wonder appear side by side, for the first time, in a single publication. Examining in detail at least one amazing site for all fifty states, author Albert Dickas clearly explains the geologic forces behind each one’s origin. Dickas discusses not only iconic landforms such as Devil s Tower in Wyoming but also locales that are often overlooked yet have fascinating stories. A good paleontologist has to know geology to study prehistoric life, plus this book is filled with America’s beauty. Amply illustrated with full-color photographs and illustrations, this book will entertain and inform geology buffs whether 52
Lens to the Natural World: Reflections on Dinosaurs, Galaxies, and God Kenneth H. Olson (Author), Jack Horner (Foreword) $ 2 6 . 0 0 Paperback: 220 pages Wipf & Stock Publishers ISBN-10: 1610974549 ISBN-13: 9781610974547 As your PT editor, I have never had a problem believing both in God and science, including evolution. I told Ken Olson, the author of this new book that, by e-mail, and he said to me; “Science can deal very well with the process, the mechanics, the details, of evolution but not the ultimate source. The questions of Who and Why are deeper in the heart of nature and call forth, beyond all knowledge, a profound sense of wonder at creation.” This a book about the author’s hunt for dinosaurs but so much more too. It is shown that science and religion obviously do work together. No extremism here, just a beautiful look about nature, our universe and our place within it. A fine read on an important subject you do not see covered often. Olson is a long-time Research Associate in Paleontology at The Museum of the Rockies and has world famous paleontologist John Horner’s endorsement for this book; in fact, Horner wrote the foreword. Jewels of the Early Earth: Minerals and Fossils of the Precambrian by Bruce L. Stinchcomb $29.99 Paperback: 160 pages Schiffer Publishing, Ltd. ISBN-10: 0764338803 ISBN13: 978-0764338809 Over 650 vivid color photos reveal the geocollectible fossils and minerals associated with the first two billion years of earth's history in this new collector guide. The text explores the geology of shield areas including attractive minerals and crystals like emerald and aquamarine. Some of the earth's oldest fossils are included, displayed in outcrops harboring the earliest evidence of life. This is about the ninth book in the series by the author (I think I’ve reviewed them all) and is a must for anyone passionate about geology and paleontology. Children of Time: Evolution and the Human Story Anne H. Weaver (Author), Matt Celeskey (Illustrator) $24.95 Hardcover: 192 pages University of New Mexico Press ISBN-10: 0826344429 ISBN-13: 9780826344427 Ancient relics--stone tools, bones, footprints, and even DNA-offer many clues about our human ancestors and how they lived. Yet our kinship with our human ancestors lies as much in their interactions with others and their curiosity, as it does in the shape of their bones and teeth. Unfortunately the evolution of human behavior left us no direct fossil traces. Children of Time brings this vanished aspect of the human past to life through Anne Weaver's scientifically-informed imagination. Anne H. Weaver has a Ph.D. in anthropology from the University of New Mexico. The stories move through various eras of human development, following the lives of ancient hominids through the eyes of their children. Each carefully researched chapter is based on an actual child fossil--a baby, a five-year-old, a young adolescent, and teenagers. The children and their families are Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
brought to life through illustrator Matt Celeskey's paintings of paleoenvironments where they encounter saber-toothed cats, giraffids, wild dogs, fearsome crocodiles, and primitive horses. The result is an adventure that speculates on the human drama as it unfolds in many dimensions, from social organization and technology to language, music, art, and religious consciousness. When Dinos Dawned, Mammals Got Munched, and Pterosaurs Took Flight: A Cartoon PreHistory of Life in the Triassic by Hannah Bonner $17.95 Reading level: Ages 8 and up Hardcover: 48 pages National Geographic Children's Books ISBN-10: 1426308620 ISBN-13: 9781426308628 In the style of WHEN BUGS WERE BIG and WHEN FISH GOT FEET this third book discusses all the exciting developments of the Triassic Age, from the recovery of the planet from the most deadly mass extinction ever, to the first appearance of the dinosaurs. We also get to meet the first mammals, the first pterosaurs, and some predatory marine reptiles. With the books' signature blend of humor and well presented information, cartoon illustrations help keep the fact-filled material fun. Bailey at the Museum by Harry Bliss $16.99 Ages 3 and up Hardcover: 32 pages Scholastic Press Coming September 1, 2012 ISBN-10: 0545233453 ISBN-13: 978-0545233453 Bailey the dog is very excited about the school trip to the Museum of Natural History. After all, he loves to dig up bones! And besides bones, there's lots of fun to be had with dinosaur skeletons. Bailey's classmates never know what will happen next: maybe that's why the museum guard becomes Bailey's special partner. Bailey is a character that every picture-book age kid wants to read about and will enjoy his humor and charm. Groovy Tube Books: Gone Extinct! (Fact Book, Game Board and Collectible Figurines) Hardcover by Katie Parker $19.99 24 pages Publisher: Innovative Kids ISBN-10:1584769416 ISBN-13: 978-1584769415 Packed with collectible miniatures in a resealable snap-top tube, these best-selling kits explore kids’ favorite topics and include some interesting figures too. Both prehistoric animals to more recently gone-extinct animals figures are included in the tube. The book helps kids learn all about animals that once walked the Earth. They also learn about currently endangered animals and how they can help stop these creatures from becoming extinct. Comes with a 24 page removable hardcover book, board game and 15 extinct animal figures including a nicely done Arthropleura, Archelon, Opabinia, Brachauchenius, Ammonite and more. Dinosaurs Alive! was originally shown in IMAX theaters. This BluRay - narrated by Michael Douglas tells tales of dinosaur discovery beginning with Roy Chapman Andrews (the original Indiana Jones) in the Gobi Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
Desert of Mongolia and then continuing to modern times with paleontologists Mark Norell and Michael Novacek from the AMNH in New York, who travel to the Flaming Cliffs in the Gobi every year to search for fossils. We then move to Ghost Ranch in New Mexico to study Coelophysis and a newly discovered crocodilian fossil. The CG animation is certainly not bad but comparatively not as good as we have seen. This disc has some good footage and info but I would give it three stars out of five. March of the Dinosaurs is a Blu-Ray offering created by the same people that gave us the fantastic “Walking with Dinosaurs” series from England. The star of this CG dinosaur tale is a young Edmontosaurus who is migrating a long distant through the Arctic cold with his herd. If the icy winds and freezing snow aren’t bad enough, the edmontosaurs also have to defend themselves against meateating Troodons and Gorgosaurus. The animation is realistic here. The story is narrated without any scientific information offered. It is certainly enjoyable but perhaps just a tad too long. Nonetheless, 4 out of 5 stars. The BBC’s latest dinosaur documentary was all the talk among many of you when it was announced, even though we couldn’t watch it here in America. (luckily we had “Dinosaur Revolution” here in the US at the same time) Now you can watch it; well, sort of. Planet Dinosaur is an almost three hour Blu-Ray disc showing all six episodes from the BBC series special. Narrated by John Hurt, the CG graphics are extremely well done. I know its an over-used word but I thought several scenes were truly awesome. In between the CG action scenes, we are shown various graphics and fossilized bones that tell us stories about the dinosaur’s fights and their lives. The show provides some great, very up-to-date information; some of which, I dare say, you did not know. The first episode is set in prehistoric Africa, where we follow a Spinosaurus and meet Carcharodontosaurus, Ouranosaurus, Sarchosuchus, Rugops and more. The second episode is all about the feathered dinosaurs of China. Episode 3 covers the Late Cretaceous and the meat-eaters of that era. Part 4 is set in the Jurassic where we watch not only stegosaurs and allosaurs but marine reptiles too, including the huge Predator X. (I was surprised to hear John Hurt seriously use the word “Thagomizer” to describe Stegosaurus spikes.) The fifth episode is mostly about sauropods and other large dinosaurs and the final episode shows various dinosaur forms that evolved to help dinosaurs survive. I highly recommend the show; in fact, more than I do the other two Blu-Rays I review in this column but, as mentioned at the beginning of this review there is a possible problem. The Blu-Ray would not play on my Blu-Ray player, even though it is supposedly for all areas of the world. I have a new laptop that plays Blu-Ray movies and fortunately it did fine on it. I also understand you can update your Blu-Ray player to play foreign discs, but you have been forewarned. I give it all five stars. 53
MEET KURT MILLER COMPUTER ARTIST Kurt Miller is an illustrator residing in York, Pennsylvania. He has been working on a Dinosaur video game called “Triassic Terror” that includes the dinosaur art you see on these pages (never mind the fact that none of these dinosaurs are from the Triassic period; Kurt didn’t name the game.) Kurt was originally a traditional medium illustrator with airbrush or oil paint back in the 90’s who now works with 3D on a computer. “I now mix my 3D with my traditional experience on a digital Wacom tablet through Photoshop. Here is one of my old traditional paintings using airbrush back in 1991. And now digital 3D below. This is so much more fun than the old traditional way, I now can direct better and edit instantly for a better composition. Right: The board game cover art from the rough stage. The game should be released before Christmas.
Check out Kurt’s site for more amazing artwork: www.kmistudio.com
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All artwork ©Kurt Miller Studio
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Be Square! The facts about the Marx square boxed Prehistoric Times playsets By Pat Schaefer With this article, we come back, full circle, to the place where we started: the catalogs of Montgomery Wards. Why there? Because we want to return to the question of Marx “square box” sets and what they might contain. In that first of a series of articles, we proposed a new species of Marx play set. To the uninitiated, it seemed like a harmless thing, but the set failed to live up to some people’s expectations. I heard, “Impossible.” It does not have 2 slim T-rex figures. “Can’t trust a catalog.” But, after our review of catalogs, we know catalogs can be reliable guides. “Never saw such a set.” You will see one in this article, three, actually. We will begin by reviewing our play set working models as found in the Montgomery Wards catalogs for 1959-1962. Then, we will look at 3 “real” sets that match the catalog descriptions. From there, we will use set science and a little math to try to bridge from the wilderness of discovery to the land of the orthodox, stopping briefly, to discuss a fourth “impossible” set, before we set foot on the mainland.
Wards catalog #48 2748 (1959-60): Our final working model consists of 2 small mold groups, 1 medium mold group, 1 large mold group and 1 revised mold group for a total of 31 figures, made up of 14 different kinds of dinosaurs. We expect 4 trees and 4 ferns, 4 rock bases and 1 booklet. Our final working model inventory is 44 pieces. Wards catalog #48 2709 (1961-62): Our final working model is similar but with two differences. We expect the addition of 6 cavemen which raises our working model inventory to 50 pieces. Before we begin describing “real” sets, we need to establish some ground rules which we will now do in a few asides. Plant mold aside: We limited our catalog descriptions to trunks and tops, bases and fronds, counts or no counts. When describing actual sets, we are going to be a bit more precise. For palms, there are 3 styles of trunk, and 5 styles of tops. The trunk styles are: tall single, medium double U-trunk, and small double V-trunk. The top styles are: large, medium_1, medium_2, small_1, and small_2. A complete mold set of palms consists of 4 trunks: 1 large, 1 double U-trunk and 2 double V-trunk; and 7 tops: 1 large, 1 medium_1, 2 medium_2, 1 small_1, 2 small_2. For ferns, there is one style of base, and 2 styles of frond. The frond styles are: “3-leaf ”, and “4-leaf.” A 56
complete mold set of ferns consists of 4 bases and 4 tops: 2 “3-leaf ” and 2 “4-leaf.” Mold mates aside: A corollary of the hypothesis that play sets are made up of mold groups is, that, with few exceptions, we expect each mold group to be the same color, same shade even! The exceptions are the large mold group and, in sets from the 1970’s, the revised mold group and the monsters & mammals mold group. We are introducing a shot we call color tracks. The intent is to allow one to count figures and determine, as near as one can from a magazine photo, that they are all the same shade, that they are all mold mates. Marx “square box” set description - all sets: The box is roughly square shaped (approximately 18” x 15” x 4” ). All of the boxes are made from pasteboard that is white on one side, except the Marx No. 3394 box which is uncolored. All of the white pasteboard boxes show varying degrees of fading / staining. The top is decorated with a prehistoric scene in brown and blue green. Ad copy: minimal title “Prehistoric Times Play Set”, references to Marx Inc. and “Complete Play Set with prehistoric animals, molded realistic terrain, palm trees & ferns”. The Marxie character sports a “MARX” logo not just a “MAR” logo which places it sometime during or after 1959. None of the boxes contain a play mat. All of the boxes contain 4 terrain pieces, 8 plants and from 31 to 36 figures. The 4 terrain pieces are a hard, brown plastic with a subtle color marbling. The largest piece depicts a pool and waterfall. Also there is a flat mesa, a tall ridge with a cave and a smaller ridge without (kidney-shaped). Each set of terrain pieces are in a slightly different color. The 8 plants consist of 4 palm trees and 4 ferns. The palm trunks are
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brown hard plastic, the tops are soft plastic. The fern bases and fronds follow this same pattern. Most of the 31 to 36 figures are dinosaurs but, in one set, 6 of the figures are cavemen. The dinosaurs are from 4 mold groups: small, medium, large, and revised. Marx square box set - No Marx No. / Wards 48-2748: There is no Marx number to be seen on either side panel. There is a Wards ID “48-2748” stamped on bottom in black ink. Also, on the bottom, there are pasted papers referencing shipping arrangements for Montgomery Wards. No date /year is discernible. The box contains terrain pieces, plants, and figures as described above. The figure count for this box is 31. The plants are a mold set as previously described. The palm tops are dark green, the fern fronds are the same dark green color. There are 2 small mold groups, 7 figures in each. Each mold group consists of mold mates, one is a dark brown, the other is a light green. There is 1 medium mold group with 6 mold mates in a gray color. There is 1 revised mold group with 8 mold mates in a light gray color. The large mold group has a light green Brontosaurus, a silver T-rex, and a gray Kronosaurus in a shade similar to the medium group. Comment: This set matches the catalog working model for the Wards 1959 and 1960 Christmas catalogs. I am offering this as a possible holotype for the species. This box has no Marx No. on it, I am not aware of any other Marx set sold without a number. Model Mismatch / Missing: 1 booklet.
Marx square box set - No. 3394 / Wards 48-2748: This box is made of plain brown pasteboard. The Marx number “No. 3394” can be seen on either side. There is a Wards ID “48-2748” stamped left side panel in black ink. On the bottom there is also pasted a shipping label from “Metro Truck Delivery” for Montgomery Wards. No date /year is discernible. The box contains terrain pieces, plants, and figures as described above. The figure count for this box is 31. The plants appear to be missing one piece. There are only 6 palm tops. The tops are light green. The ferns are a mold set. The fronds are the same light green as the palm tops. There are 2 small mold groups, 7 figures in each. Each mold group consists of mold mates, one is a dark brown, the other is a light green. There is 1 medium mold group with 6 mold mates in a light gray color. There is 1 revised mold group with 8 mold mates in a gray color with a light marbling. The large mold group has a green Brontosaurus, a very light gray T-rex, and a green Kronosaurus. Comment: This set matches the catalog working model for the Wards 1959 and 1960 Christmas catalog. Model Mismatch / Missing: 1 booklet, and 1 small_2 palm top Marx square box set - No. 3388: The Marx No. “#3388” can be seen on either side. The box contains terrain pieces, plants, and figures as described above. Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
The figure count for this box is 36. The 36 figures consist of 30 dinosaurs and 6 cavemen. It also contains 1 booklet. The plants appear to be missing one piece. The palms are a mold set with the palm tops in light green. There are only 3 fern fronds. They are the same light green as the palm tops. There are 2 small mold groups, 7 figures in each. Each mold group consists of mold mates, one is a dark brown, the other is a light green. There is 1 medium mold group with 6 mold mates in a light gray color. There is 1 revised mold group with only 7 mold mates in a light gray color. The large mold group has a medium gray Brontosaurus, a metallic silver T-rex, and a Kronosaurus in the same color. There are 6 white cavemen in 6 poses. Comment: Not a Wards set but matches the Montgomery Wards 48-2709 catalog model, the one with the cavemen. This is the only Marx box using “#” instead of “No.” or just numerals. Model Mismatch / Missing: 1 booklet, 1 revised mold T-rex figure, 1 “3-leaf ” fern frond.
Where do we go from here? So far, we utilized catalogs and set science to propose two kinds of square box sets. Both sets have 2 small, 1 medium, 1 large, and 1 revised mold group. The sets differ in whether or not 6 cavemen are included. We have documented the existence of three sets that match this description. But, now that we are all out of catalogs, what can set
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science do to move us along and finally get to where we are talking about “real” square box sets. Let’s add a bit of math to set science, all the best sciences do it. It seems clear that, even with a new mold group, Marx did not think sets with 1 of each group (24 figures) would sell. It also seems likely that a set with 2 of each mold group (48 figures) would be too expensive. So, what can we find between one of each and two of each. Let’s ask math for a bit of help. If we started with 8 mold groups, say each of the 4 mold group in 2 different colors, and took them 7 at at time, math tells us there are just 8 possible combinations (if order is not important and no repetition allowed). If we then took them 6 at at time, there would be 28 different combinations. 5 at a time gives 56 combinations. So,
in an embarrassment of riches, we have a total of 92 potential sets. Now, let’s reexamine the sets we know, to see if we can deduce some rules to help us filter out unlikely possibilities. The basic premise of set science is that sets are made of full mold groups not individual figures, so let’s make that our starting point (Filter 0). We can further deduce two other filters; Filter 1: at least 1 of each mold group and Filter 2: 31 total figures. If we apply all three filters on the 92 candidate sets, Set A (31 figures, 2 small, 1 medium, 1 large, and 1 revised) is the only possible set that emerges, this is the set of the Wards catalogs. If we only apply filters 0 and 1, we get Set B (32 figures, 1 small, 1 medium, 1 large, and 2 revised). If we only apply filters 0 and 2, Set C (31 figures, 0 small, 2 medium, 1 large, and 2 revised) becomes a possibility. If we only apply Filter 0, we posit another 32 figure set, Set D (32 figures, 2 small, 2 medium, 2 large, and 0 revised). Time to ‘fess up. There is no way to use set science to bridge from the wilderness of discovery to the land of orthodoxy. In the conventional view of square box sets, there is no Filter 0. The conventional view allows some individual figures to be present, without their mold mates. So, in an effort to bridge the gap, we will allow some flexibility to Filter 0. We will bend this rule by allowing addition of up to two individual slim T-Rex figures, Filter 2T. If we apply filters 1, 2, and 2T, we get Set E (31 figures, 1 small, 2 medium, 1 large, 1 revised, 1 slim T-Rex). The application of filters 2 and 2T creates Set F (31 figures, 2 small, 2 medium, 1 large, 0 revised, 2 slim T-Rex). Notice that sets B and C also satisfy the 2 T-rex criteria without resorting to adding individual figures. Remember, what we are talking about now, are possible sets. We have seen 3 examples of Set A. Now, let us continue as I describe an example of Set D. Marx square box set - No Marx No.: There is no Marx number to be seen on either side panel. The box contains terrain pieces, plants, and figures as described above. The figure count for this box is 32. This box also contained a divider. The plants appear to be mold sets. The palm tops are dark green, the fern fronds are the same dark green. The 32 figures are all dinosaurs which come from one of these 3 mold groups: small, medium, or large. There are no revised figures in this set. There are 2 small mold groups, 7 figures in each. Each mold group consists of mold mates, one is dark brown, the other light green. There are 2 medium mold groups with 6 figures in each. Each mold group consists of mold mates, one is a light gray, the other a very light green. The 2 large mold groups both have the same color scheme: a light gray Brontosaurus, a metallic silver T-rex, and a light green Kronosaurus. Comment: This grouping of figures has not been found in any catalog, 58
and many claim Marx never put 2 large mold groups into 1 set. But it does match one of our possible sets, it matches Set D. So if this is not a valid set, how do we explain how these figures came together? We could go through as series of thought experiments of devising ways to bring these figures together; some wild, some devious, all, to my mind, improbable. For example, we could posit some middle man has done the trick. He restored a set he bought by adding a second large mold group, one with a metallic silver T-Rex, no less. But why? It would certainly be as easy to slip in two slim T-rex figures and more profit to sell the large mold group separately. Does anyone else have a similar set? In an article of Plastic Figure & Playset Collector magazine - PFPC #64 (page 13), one set is described as a near mint 1960 set with ”no sign of the revised PL-977 mold group” and two shots of the large, medium, and small mold groups. Besides the one I own, I have seen similar sets for sale online. Current Consensus model: Based on articles I have read, the current consensus model for the square box set matches Set F. That is, 2 small mold groups, 2 medium mold group and 1 large mold group (29 figures) plus 2 individual figures for a total of 31. Of the two individual figures one is always a slim T-Rex. The second figure is usually a another slim T-rex but can be a Brontosaurus. The broadest description of the model is 31 figures and at least 1 slim T-Rex and no cavemen. But like Ricky was wont to say “You got som’ splainin’ to do”. Where are the mold mates? If you take the slim T-Rex and Brontosaurus figures from their revised mold mates, where did the other six go? Maybe, there were 2 molds. If the original slim T-rex had its own mold and the figure was later incorporated somehow into a second mold for the entire revised group, why has no one reported 2 kinds of slim T-rex figures? After all, Marx could not duplicate the Dimetrodon and Plateosaurus on the small mold without slight but noticeable differences. I have a hard time accepting the Consensus model, without some explanation as to what happened to the other figures. We will now estimate the chronological order of the Marx sets by using the Wards catalog IDs. But, first, we need to report on a set we saw on the internet. Marx square box set - No. 3388 / Wards 48-2709: The Marx No. “#3388” can be seen on left side panel. The Wards ID “48-2709” is, also, stamped on left side panel in black ink. Comment: The set appears to have been restored. The box contained terrain pieces, plants, figures, and most importantly, cavemen. This is the only Wards 48-2709 I have seen. We know we can match the Wards IDs with the catalogs and the catalogs are dated. We can use this information to determine the following chronological order of the Marx sets. In 1959, Marx sold the set with No Marx Number. In 1960, Marx offered the No. 3394. In 1961 and 1962, Marx retailed the #3388. But what about the No. 3393? Marx was not reluctant to put numbers on their boxes, so I do not see the need to equate no number with this number. I have not yet seen a box with No. 3393 printed on its side but will keep on digging; who knows.
Subscribers!! If the three digit number at the end of your address label on your PT shipping envelope is 102, guess what? That’s right, it’s time to renew. All the information you need is on our table of contents page in this issue and at our internet site. And remember, PLEASE, only renew directly through us and not some other company that only sends us pennies on your dollar. Thanks! PT Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
Starting The Model Kit
"TALL FORKED HORN" By Steven DeMarco
The kit comes in eight pieces total, which includes a resin ground base
and also a wooden base to stain and varnish at the very end. I began by washing all the pieces in hot soapy water in my sink, and then letting it soak for a good half an hour before rinsing all the parts with cold water. This gets most all of the mold release agent off all the resin pieces. This process will help my spray primer adhere much better to all the parts.
Synthetoceras tricornatus is an extinct genus of the Artiodactyla, of the family of Protoceratidae of North America. Tricornatus was basically a deer sized, distant relative of a camel that was found in the Pliocene deposits of Texas. The males of the species usually had a body length of 6 feet, 8 inches and weighed 500 to 730 lbs. It was the largest and the last of
the Synthetoceras family. The features that made this deer-like species stand out, was the strange set of h o r n s
Scrape All Seams With an X-Acto knife I carefully scraped any resin seams such as I found on the sides of the Y-shaped horn, along with any other seam lines on the other parts as well. Glue Your Pieces You can use any decent brand of Super Glue or Crazy Glue Gel for gluing the resin parts together. I find that the Gel is more durable than the liquid along with giving me more control while in the gluing process. I then let it dry for 15 20 minutes.
including a Y-shaped, very tall horn just above the stout giving it the title for this article that best fits this Synthetoceras, "Tall Forked Horn". Sean Cooper, the founder of Paleocraft Resin Model Kits, has captured this species of ancient animal with unbelievable detail and body language. This amazing kit sells for only $93.00 plus $8.50 for shipping. You can e-mail Sean at
[email protected]. 60
Putty Seams & Gaps This step is the putty step process where I use two small equal amounts of Aves Apoxie Sculpt Part A & Part B, carefully filling in the small, and often not too noticeable seams. Keeping my fingers wet helps smooth the putty as I work at the seams, blending and smoothing just outside the filled seams. This step prevents a lot of sanding and time consuming labor later. I let it dry for at least 2 hours. Prehistoric Times No. 102 Summer 2012
Spray Priming The Kit Now I can spray primer on the model kit. I spray the kit by using WalMart’s brand called "Fast Dry Spray Paint" Gray Primer. It only costs 98 cents plus tax and works great with resin and also helps your acrylic paint to adhere well to the model kit. I spray even coats all over, top, bottom, sides until I no longer see the resin color. I let it dry for 10-15 minutes - outside my house.
flat-shaped and very wet brush. By doing this, I give it that gradient effect that we see in nature. I look at lot's of wild life reference material in order to get ideas and patterns, but also use my imagination as well. Dry Brush Tricornatus Dry brushing is a bit of an art. Done correctly, it can really make a model a dazzler! Using a 1 inch dry brush, I dry brush with a mixture of 2 parts "Camel" and 2 parts "White" over the entire kit. I then add a light Burnt Sienna wash over the entire kit. When dry, I then will dry brush again using the light value of the Camel color mix one more time in just the most protruding areas. Painting Horns, Eyes and Hooves I base coat these areas with Black. When dry, I dry brush using (not for the eyes) Quaker Grey and Terra Cotta mixed. I keep the eyes Black and clear gloss coat them afterwards giving the eyes a wet look.
Base Coat the Base I begin to paint by first base coating the ground base of the model with Anita's All Purpose Acrylic paint "Espresso" and small amounts of Folk Art Black, blending the two together. When dry, I drybrush the base with a mixture of Americana "Terra Cotta" and small amounts of Americana's "Quaker Grey". Then, using washes of Burnt Sienna and Raw Sienna, I dab washes here and there to the different areas of the base until I am satisfied with the look. I allow it to dry completel y ,
and then dry brush a lighter value of that Terra Cotta /Quaker gray mixture to the most protruding areas to create light colored highlights. Painting and Base Coating the Tricornatus I now start painting my Tricornatus by first base coating the entire figure with 3 parts Americana "Camel" color and 1 part Terra Cotta, blending them together, with more "Camel" color in the middle of the figure. This breaks up the value pattern even though it's blended nicely giving more of an earth tone and natural look to it. Next I blend White from the underside of the animal on up to the lower areas using a Prehistoric Times No. 101 Spring 2012
Painting the Mouth Now I base coat the inside of the mouth with 2 Parts Folk Art's "True Burgundy" and 2 parts Flesh. When dry, I add a wash of True Burgundy with a little Black added to it and carefully apply it to the inside of the mouth. The "Y" Shaped Horn Last, but not least, I first base coat the Y-shaped horn with 2 parts White, 2 parts Camel and 1 part Yellow ochre. Once dry, from the base of the horn, I use Espresso brown and a little Black and blend up to the middle areas using a flat wet brush. Then when dry, I use an antique white color from the tips blending down until I connect and blend with the middle areas. I then have a nice, realistic dark to middle transition and on to light value area on the Y-shaped horn. My model is finished and one that I am proud to add to my model collection. See you next time and happy modeling. I am available for building and painting of your model kits, please e-mail me at:
[email protected] All photos by Steven DeMarco
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