Explore 295 Fossils Collections - Atlas Obscura
Places near me Random place

295 Items Tagged

Fossils

Share
Hamburg, New Jersey

Hamburg Stromatolites

An approximately 500 million-year-old rock outcropping covered in fossilized bacteria.
Dawdon, England

Dawdon’s Fossil Tree

The fossilized trunk of a tree that grew around 320 million years ago.
Columbus, Ohio

Ohio Statehouse Fossils

The walls of the statehouse tell the story of Ohio’s prehistoric past.
One of this cat’s distinctive sabers was broken off before it died.
skulls

This Stunning Sabertooth Cat Skull Belonged to a Big Male That Died Young

Found in southwestern Iowa, the well-preserved fossil is about 13,500 years old.
Matthew Hill July 17, 2023
Aki, Japan

Ioki Cave

Over 40 species of fern cover the canyon walls of this lush green bowl, cut off from the bustle of the world by a cave entrance.
dinosaurs

Podcast: Bone Wars

How a feud broke new ground for fossil history.
The Podcast Team June 23, 2023
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

Gettysburg Dinosaur Tracks

Long before the Battle of Gettysburg occurred, dinosaurs roamed the area and left their footprints on this bridge.
The Anchisaurus cast in its display case.
East Windsor, Connecticut

The Bones from the Well

A replica of fossils believed to be the first scientifically-described dinosaur bones found in North America.
The fossil tree
Tiroran, Scotland

The Fossil Tree and Burg

On a corner of the Ardmeanach peninsula on the Isle of Mull, a 50 million-year-old fossil tree hides in the coastal cliffs.
Each cave’s beautiful decoration can tell us something about the world that came before us.
caves

How to Decode a Cave

Below California’s surface lies a series of caves that can teach us a lot about our natural world—and its history.
dinosaurs

This Arctic Ichthyosaur Should Not Exist

A marine reptile fossil from Svalbard challenges ideas about evolution and Earth’s greatest mass extinction.
Gemma Tarlach March 21, 2023
The vast expansive dunes with the mother mountain source on the horizon
Cuatrociénegas, Mexico

Dunas de Yeso

These gleaming gypsum sand dunes are the second-largest in North America.
Skull and vertebrae of the mosasaurid Yaguarasaurus columbianus
Bogotá, Colombia

Museo Geológico Nacional José Royo y Gómez

A small museum filled with unique fossil finds, including one of the oldest specimens of ground sloths found in Colombia.
architecture

Wonder Is Everywhere: Civil War Gold, a New Moai, and More From Around the Web

Get a peek into what we’re obsessed with right now.
April White March 1, 2023
science

Iowa’s Ancient Apex Predator Was the ‘T. rex’ of Its Day

The monstrous menace known as Whatcheeria hints that our distant ancestors may have been more like us than we thought.
Gemma Tarlach December 2, 2022
Lamar, Colorado

Petrified Wood Building

Once named the “world’s oldest gas station” due to its unusual construction material.
museums

Podcast: Fluorescent Rocks of Sterling Hill

A light show, courtesy of a historic New Jersey mine.
The Podcast Team November 30, 2022
dinosaurs

A ‘Weird’ Ancient Marine Reptile Surfaces Thanks to the ‘Bone Biddies’

The unique plesiosaur defies the fossil rulebook—just ask the “paleogrannies” who prepared it for study.
Gemma Tarlach September 28, 2022