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

295 Items Tagged

Fossils

Share
An artist's rendering of one of the three new giant cloud rat species.
islands

Giant Cloud Rats Hint at a Prehistoric Biodiversity Paradise

Oversized, fluffy rodents in the Philippines may have been hunted by our evolutionary cousins. 
Gemma Tarlach April 27, 2021
Dinosaur State Park
List

14 Places to Walk in the Footsteps of Dinosaurs

Step into the land before time.
Jonathan Carey April 23, 2021
A green smudge in a sun-baked orange expanse, the modern oasis of Jubbah was once a lake, and may have appealed to the first members of our species to leave Africa.
exploration

A Desert Oasis Hints at a Long History of Resilience and Exploration

On the Arabian Peninsula, Jubbah holds clues to how humans adapted in the past.
Gemma Tarlach April 20, 2021
How many of you were there?
dinosaurs

The Thorny Problem of Tallying Every T. rex to Ever Live

Here’s why it’s really, really hard to count how many of the apex predators once stalked Earth’s surface.
Jessica Leigh Hester April 19, 2021
Stanhope fossil tree
Stanhope, England

Stanhope Fossil Tree

This sandstone tree trunk is a relic from a long-past era when England had a more tropical climate.
Viewed from overhead, the promontory of Dmanisi includes medieval and Bronze Age ruins, a working monastery, and a small but rich fossil site.
skulls

The Carnivore Paradise That Keeps Changing the Story of Human Evolution

New research at Dmanisi continues to challenge what we think we know about our deep past.
Gemma Tarlach April 9, 2021
Geologist Daphne Lee, in her office at the University of Otago, has collected drawers full of impressively preserved plant fossils found at Foulden Maar.
collections

New Zealanders Are Rallying to Save Local Fossils From Destruction

For years, miners and geologists cooperated to uncover uniquely preserved fossils at Foulden Maar. But the site’s future is uncertain.
Kate Evans April 6, 2021
the fossil is a type of sea urchin
Córdoba, Spain

Estrella de los Deseos (Wishing Star)

Touching this little fossil embedded in the wall of a grand mosque-cathedral may make your wishes come true.
Camp Century staff, seen here in 1960, excavated tunnels about 25 feet below the ice sheet's surface before abandoning the project
tunnels

How a Secret Cold War Project Led to Signs of Ancient Life—and a New Warning About the Future

Researchers found fossils in a forgotten ice core that rewrite Greenland’s icy past.
Gemma Tarlach March 15, 2021
This creature, <em>Podokesaurus holyokensis</em>, is primed to be Massachusetts's future official dinosaur.
dinosaurs

In Other Election News, Massachusetts Just Voted on a State Dinosaur

Meet Podokesaurus holyokensis, a prehistoric resident of the Commonwealth.
Jessica Leigh Hester February 5, 2021
This artists' rendering illustrates the scientists' idea of how the ancient worms might have settled in to wait for prey.
science

Enter the Lair of an Enormous, Ancient, Predatory Worm

Trace fossils are useful paleontological allies—but they can't tell us everything.
Jessica Leigh Hester February 4, 2021
The Spider Crab hanging on the second floor balcony of the museum.
New Brunswick, New Jersey

Japanese Giant Spider Crab

This exoskeleton was gifted to Rutgers University by Japan for its role in educating some of the first Japanese citizens to study outside the country.
Al Wathba Fossil Dune Formations
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

Al Wathba Fossil Dunes

These otherworldly formations were shaped over millions of years by the forces of nature.
Fick Fossil and History Museum
Oakley, Kansas

Fick Fossil and History Museum

This small museum contains fossils from an era when Kansas was underwater.
Stan sold for a thunderous sum.
dinosaurs

The Fossils That Get Away (From Scientists)

A high-profile T. rex sale is a reminder that paleontologists get stressed when fossils vanish into private hands.
Jessica Leigh Hester November 13, 2020
Another view of the ice cave exhibit.
Ithaca, New York

Ice Age Glacial Exhibit

This exhibit allows visitors to wander through the interior of a replica Ice Age glacial cave.
Albuquerque, New Mexico

Calabacillas Arroyo Artificial Fossils

From a T-rex to a teapot, a cast of artificial fossils illustrates New Mexico's history.
hot springs

Did Early Humans Invent Hot Pot in Geothermal Pools?

A mystery microbe found at Olduvai Gorge inspired scientists to speculate about the origins of cooking.
Isaac Schultz September 30, 2020