"La vie a souvent été troublée sur cette terre par des événemens effroyables. // Life has often been disturbed on this earth by frightful events." ~ Georges Cuvier, Discours sur les révolutions de la surface du globe (1822)

Known as "The Great Dying," the Permian-Triassic Extinction Event is the largest extinction event in the history of the planet. While studies point to several factors, the chief catalyst of this extinction event is a series of massive volcanic eruptions known as the Siberian Traps.

MASS EXTINCTION EVENT, VOLCANIC ROCK, ESTIMATED RATE OF EXTINCTION: +95% OF ALL LIFE, ESTIMATED DURATION OF ERUPTION: 1,000,000 years

Over the course of 1,000,000 years, these flood basalt eruptions covered over 7 million square kilometers (2,700,000 square miles) with as much as 4 million cubic kilometers of lava (~1,000,000 cubic miles). Carbon dioxide and methane releases triggered by the Siberian Traps caused runaway global warming, driving ocean temperatures to exceed 40C (104F) and killing nearly 95% of life on Earth.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a basalt slab from the Kuznetsk Basin in southwestern Siberia. The Kuznetsk Basin is also home to one of the largest coal deposits on earth, a remnant of the global destruction caused by the Siberian Traps.

The Great Dying made its first appearance in the Fourth Edition. It returns to Age of Dinosaurs to mark the beginning of the Mesozoic Era.

"Modern geology permits us to follow the first outlines of the history of a great ocean which once stretched across part of Eurasia. The folded and crumpled deposits of this ocean stand forth to heaven in Tibet, Himalaya, and the Alps. This ocean we designate by the name "Tethys," after the sister and consort of Oceanus. The latest successor to the Tethyan Sea is the present Mediterranean." ~ Eduard Suess, Austrian Geologist, "Are Great Ocean Depths Permanent" (1893)

At the beginning of the Mesozoic Era, the Tethys Ocean was bound by the great Panthalassa Ocean within the cradle of the supercontinent Pangaea. During the Jurassic Period, the shifting continents compressed the Tethys to form an equatorial seaway stretching from today's Caribbean Islands to what is now the Himalayas.

This warm and relatively shallow seaway was a powerful transport current for the global circulation of floral and faunal elements. Whether the tropical effect of this ocean gateway played a role in the enormous size attained by dinosaurs is still uncertain but it is an area of intense study. Remnants of the Tethys remain in the Mediterranean, Caspian, Black, and Aral Seas.

OCEAN FLOOR, CEPHALOPOD FOSSIL, INITIAL FORMATION OF THE NEO-TETHYS: TRIASSIC PERIOD (c. 250,000,000 years ago)

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a fragment of the Tethys Ocean floor recovered from the Himalayas along the banks of the Gandaki River in Nepal. Composed primarily of ammonite and belemnite fossils, this layer of dark shale was lifted tens of thousands of feet above sea level as the Indian subcontinent crashed into Asia. Revealed by natural erosion, the stones tumbled into rivers and streams, churning for millenia, until they reach lower altitudes and are collected by locals and pilgrims alike.

The logarithmic spirals often found within these smooth stones are considered abstract representations of the divine in some traditions of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. Referred to as shaligram or saligram, their ghostly remains illustrate the ceaseless fury of our dynamic planet, which drives continents apart and sends seas rushing in only to turn about and heave these unfathomable depths upward to become the very roof of the world.

Age of Dinosaurs marks the first appearance of this specimen in a Mini Museum Collection.

"Our planet is a restless home." ~ Sean C. Solomon, Chair NASA Solid Earth Science Working Group, 2002

Driven by heat from the core, convection currents churn the solid silicates of the mantle, pushing and pulling the thin plates of crust, bringing continents together and tearing them apart in cycles which can last for hundreds of millions of years. This shifting can also bring several continents into close enough proximity to form a single landmass above sea level. These clusters are known as supercontinents; the most famous of which is Pangaea.

Pangaea formed roughly 335,000,000 years ago and existed as a single landmass for approximately 160,000,000 years. The breakup came after a series of powerful rifting events, in which strong pulses of magma forced continental plates apart at the seams, creating new crust and opening up the basin in which the Atlantic Ocean eventually took shape. Known as the Central Atlantic Magmatic Province (CAMP), extant remnants of these flood basalts can be found in former rifts located in modern-day Morocco, Southwestern Europe, the Amazon River Basin, and Eastern North America.

VOLCANIC ROCK, TEMPORAL RANGE : 335,000,000 to 173,000,000 years ago, EXTINCTION LEVEL EVENT

As with other major geological events, CAMP was not simply a gentle shifting of landmass. The upheaval correlates with another massive extinction event in the fossil record: the Triassic–Jurassic extinction event. Nearly half of all species on Earth became extinct during this event, and it is considered the final clearing point which allowed the dinosaurs to cement their dominance for the next 135,000,000 years.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a polished diabase fragment from the Central Atlantic Magmatic Province deposits of Eastern North America. The source rock was donated by the Luck Stone Quarry adjacent to the Manassas U.S. Civil War battlefield in Northern Virginia. The quarry is a magnificent location where it is possible to clearly see one of the rift valleys which tore through the ancient supercontinent and might once have become the Atlantic Ocean.

The Breakup of Pangaea made its first appearance in the Fourth Edition. It returns to Age of Dinosaurs to mark the beginning of the Jurassic Period.

"Imagine an observer approaching our planet from outer space, and pushing aside the belts of clouds which obscure our atmosphere to simply gaze for a whole day on the surface as it rotates beneath them... The features beyond all others most likely to arrest their attention would be the wedge-like outlines of the continents as they narrow away to the South. This is indeed the most striking character present on the map of our world, and it has been so ever since the chief features of our planet have become known to us." ~ Edward Suess, Austrian Geologist and the first to advance the theory of the Gondwana supercontinent in "The Face of the Earth" (1885)

Gondwana, also known as Gondwanaland, was an ancient supercontinent which first formed 800,000,000 years ago through the accretion of several cratons, including remnants of an even older supercontinent known as Rodinia.rs.

PLANT FOSSIL, TEMPORAL RANGE: TRIASSIC to PRESENT

During the early Mesozoic, this enormous region of continental crust comprised the southern portion of Pangaea. As Pangaea began to break apart, so too did Gondwana, with the present-day continents of Africa, South America, India, Antarctica, and Australia slowly moving in different directions and creating new opportunities for evolution.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a time capsule from this moment of separation, a fragment of petrified Araucaria wood recovered in Queensland, Australia. Dating to the Jurassic Period, the "primitive" look of the Araucaria hasn't changed much over the last 200,000,000 years. Averaging 30-60 meters in height, these conifers feature straight, columnar trunks and branches covered in overlapping, scale-like leaves. It should come as no surprise that scientists believe this conifer was a favorite food for long-necked sauropods.

Araucaria made its first appearance in the Third Edition of the Mini Museum. It returns to Age of Dinosaurs to represent the supercontinent Gondwana.

"Three times during their reign of more than 300 million years, ammonites experimented with the most bizarre and startling shell shapes." ~ Wolfgang Grulke, author of "Heteromorph: The Rarest Fossil Ammonites"

Though its roots are believed to extend into the deeper past, the supercontinent of Laurasia is generally considered a Mesozoic phenomenon. Comprised of the continents which make up today's northern hemisphere, Laurasia, like its southern counterpart Gondwana, was part of Pangaea until driven apart by the rifting of the Central Atlantic Magmatic Province. This event led to the separation of Eurasia and Laurentia (North America), and eventually created the basin for today's Northern Atlantic Ocean.

CEPHALOPOD FOSSIL, ESTIMATED AGE: c. 71,000,000 years ago

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a special ammonite fossil known as Ammolite. Ammolite is a fossil gemstone composed of ammonite shells which have undergone a process of mineralization, preserving and intensifying the natural aragonite in the shell which produces the vivid iridescent sheen. It is found almost exclusively in the Cretaceous Period Bearpaw Formation of southern Alberta, Canada.

Ammonites are an extinct group of cephalopods which entered the fossil record 400 million years ago. They survived several mass extinction events before succumbing to the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event, which also saw the end of the dinosaurs. Their iconic shells exhibit a nearly perfect logarithmic spiral. This form is found in many natural phenomena, from the shape of galaxies and hurricanes to patterns on sunflower heads and the approach flight of many animals.

Ammonites made their first appearance in the Second Edition of the Mini Museum. Age of Dinosaurs marks the first appearance of the gem variety known as Ammolite.

"I would go to museums and say can I open your dinosaur egg? Can I just drop them on the floor and look inside? And they'd say no." ~ Jack Horner, Paleontologist

When thinking about deep time, we often find ourselves caught up in the grand movements and nearly unfathomable expanses of millennia stretched end to end. Yet, here in this humble eggshell we have a single moment captured for all eternity… the birth of an individual dinosaur.

ICHNOFOSSIL, TRACE FOSSIL, ESTIMATED AGE: c. 70,000,000 YEARS OLD

The egg is an incredible natural structure designed to protect and support a growing body until it is ready to come into the world. The texture, when viewed under magnification, resembles rocky hills with a network of valleys running in between. These numerous rifts serve as channels for oxygen, sustaining the fragile creature within.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a fragment of a Hypselosaurus eggshell from the Provence region of southern France. Recent studies suggest that the sauropod may have been a "small" titanosaur, measuring perhaps 12m (40ft) in length in adulthood.

Dinosaur Egg made its first appearance in the First Edition of the Mini Museum (Saltasaurus). It returns to Age of Dinosaurs with an all-new specimen (Hypselosaurus).

"So strikingly did these tracks resemble those of birds, that they were familiarly spoken of as the tracks of 'poultry,' or of 'Noah's Raven.'" ~ Edward Hitchock, Ichnology of New England: A Report on the Sandstone of the Connecticut Valley, Especially Its Fossil Footmarks, Made to the Government of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (1858)

Imagine for a moment that you are standing along a muddy flat shoreline, looking out towards the horizon. There is a slight breeze, perhaps a rustle of tall grass or trees. The half-light of dawn is just within reach. You are alone here on this shore, but not for long. You hear the soft, wet sounds of feet slapping in the mud.

ICHNOFOSSIL, TRACE FOSSIL, ESTIMATED AGE: LATE TRIASSIC to EARLY JURASSIC PERIOD

The pace is steady but unhurried. A light jog coming closer. You look through the shadows and there on two legs is a dinosaur. Your heart stops for a moment that seems to last forever, but the creature moves past you, quickly continuing on its way and fading into the distance. Looking down, you see the tridactyl (three-toed) tracks the creature left behind.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a fragment of a footprint left behind by a small, bipedal theropod. It was recovered in the Connecticut River Valley in Massachusetts on private land by a family that has provided such footprints for decades. Commonly known as a "Grallator" track, the footprints are linked to several different species from the late Triassic to early Jurassic Periods.

Age of Dinosaurs marks the first appearance of this specimen in a Mini Museum Collection.

"Most of what is known about the morphology and taphonomy of dinosaur skin comes from several exceptionally preserved hadrosaurid fossils." ~ Matt Davis, Department of Geology and Geophysics, Yale University

When we think of dinosaur fossils we usually imagine bones and teeth, but fossilized skin and scale impressions have also been discovered, as well as the imprints of feathers. In dinosaurs, scales occur in many different sizes with varied arrangements. The function of scales, aside from what we know from scales in other animals, is still under investigation, as is the complex relationship to the development of feathers.

ICHNOFOSSIL, TRACE FOSSIL, ESTIMATED AGE : c. 73,000,000-66,000,000 years old

Preservation of dinosaur skin and other soft tissues requires a combination of many factors including sedimentation and the presence of microbial mats. This delicate arrangement creates certain challenges for paleontologists when recovering skin. Early methods of extraction often bypassed these delicate structures entirely, but new methods are yielding surprising discoveries including the extraction of connective tissue and intact cellular structures.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs comes from an Edmontosaurus, a hadrosaurid common during the Late Cretaceous Period and purchased directly from paleontologists working in the field on private land.

Dinosaur Skin made its first appearance in the Second Edition of the Mini Museum.

"Dis-moi ce que tu manges, je te dirai ce que tu es. // Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are." ~ Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, Physiologie Du Gout, ou, Méditations de Gastronomie Transcendante (1826)

The huge bodies of sauropods and herbivorous ornithischians (ceratopsids, ankylosaurids, etc) required a massive amount of energy. To meet these demands, these animals relied on a process of hindgut-fermentation. This digestive model involves rapid cropping and swallowing of plants, which in turn feeds symbiotic bacteria in the gut. These diverse flora process low-nutrient foods, turning them into products the animal would otherwise be unable to extract on its own.

PLANT FOSSIL, TEMPORAL RANGE: 280,000,000 to PRESENT, ESTIMATED AGE: c. 67,000,000 years old

The palm-like figure of the Cycad is familiar to fans of classic, paleoart paintings. The extensive presence of these gymnosperms in the fossil record led many early researchers to think of Cycads simply as "dinosaur food," but the current thinking presents a more complex picture of this long-lived family of seed-bearing plants and their relationship with the largest creatures to ever walk the Earth.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs comes from a fossilized Cycad root recovered on private land in Wyoming. Part of the Lance formation, this find dates to the Late Cretaceous Period. Emerging during the early Permian period, Cycads developed into a diverse and widespread family during the Mesozoic Era, and 300 descendant species can be found in the world today.

The Cycad made its first appearance in the Fourth Edition of the Mini Museum. The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs comes from the root of the same plant fossilized roughly 67,000,000 years ago.

"The Mesozoic trend to sauropod gigantism led to the evolution of immense microbial vats unequalled in modern land animals." ~ David M.Wilkinson, University of Lincoln (2012)

"Everyone poops." ~ Tarō Gomi (1977)

Scientifically speaking, coprolites are fossilized poop. Over millions of years, minerals, such as chalcedony and quartz, replaced the original organic material. This process creates a rich, colorful matrix which allows us to study the diet and lifestyle of long extinct creatures.

ICHNOFOSSIL, TRACE FOSSIL, ESTIMATED INDIVIDUAL SAUROPOD DAILY METHANE OUTPUT: 2675 LITERS (700 GALLONS) OR 14X MODERN BOVINES

Coprolites can come from reptiles, dinosaurs, and even ancient mammals. Depending on their origin, coprolites may contain a variety of minerals such as phosphorus and calcium. Scientists use these trace fossils to help identify the species responsible for the droppings and to learn more about their diet.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a fragment of agatized coprolite from the Morrison Formation in Utah. One of the most studied fossil beds of the upper Jurassic Period, the region was once home to a large floodplain ecosystem 150,000,000 years ago. Coprolites of this size are typically attributed to sauropods.

Coprolite made its first appearance in the First Edition of the Mini Museum. The specimens in Age of Dinosaurs come from the same large coprolite (presumed to come from a sauropod) as well as similar samples from the same region.

"Like a sea serpent run through a turtle." ~ William Buckland,Oxford University Geology Lectures, 1832

Featuring a long, snake-like neck and a stout body equipped with slender paddles, Plesiosaurs are one of the most readily identifiable of all ancient marine reptiles. Biomechanical reconstructions suggest that Plesiosaurs moved through the water in the same way that turtles or penguins do, more like flying than swimming. Scientists have also discovered that Plesiosaurs used their unique bodies to hunt for bottom-dwelling crustaceans.

As air-breathing reptiles, Plesiosaurs lived near the surface in the open seas, and were able to spread around the world. Fossilized skeletons of Plesiosaurs have been found in Europe, North America, and Australia.

FOSSIL, TEMPORAL RANGE : 203,600,000 to 66,700,000 years ago, MAXIMUM KNOWN LENGTH : 14m (46ft)

New paleontological evidence suggests that Plesiosaurs may have given birth to live young instead of laying eggs, adding an interesting twist to a very unique family of reptiles.

With global distribution and nearly 140 million years in the fossil record, Plesiosaurs were incredibly successful creatures. To highlight their success, the specimen in the Age of Dinosaurs comes from the fragmented paddles (humerus, femur, and podials) of several different Plesiosaurs, recovered on private land but separated by distance in both time and location: the Lower Oxford Clay in Cambridgeshire, England dating to the Middle Jurassic Period, the Jurassic Coast of Dorset, England dating to the Late Jurassic Period, and the Morrison Formation of Utah which dates to the Cretaceous Period.

Plesiosaur made its first appearance in the Fourth Edition of the Mini Museum.

"Pliosaurs were generalist predators at the top of the food chain, able to prey on reptiles and fishes up to half their own length." ~ Davide Foffa, Vertebrate Palaeontologist and Research Fellow at National Museums Scotland

Pliosaurs are a group of extinct marine reptiles which inhabited the world's oceans during the Jurassic and Cretaceous Periods. Distant relatives to Plesiosaurs, Pliosaurs had short necks and large heads with powerful jaws.

MARINE REPTILE FOSSIL, TEMPORAL RANGE: 208,000,000 to 89,300,000, MAXIMUM KNOWN LENGTH: 15M (49FT)

With some species reaching lengths of 10m (30ft) or more, these apex predators dominated the oceans of their day, hunting a variety of prey including fellow marine reptiles.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a fragment of a Pliosaur bone from the Lower Oxford Clay in Cambridgeshire, England dating to the Middle Jurassic Period. Significant Pliosaur fossils have also been recovered in France, North America, and Australia. A more recent find from Jurassic deposits in the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard was given the early name of "Predator X" due to its enormous size. Now known as Pliosaurus funkei, this particular specimen is thought to have spanned 12m (40ft) in length, sporting a bite force on par with Tyrannosaurus rex.

Age of Dinosaurs marks the first appearance of this specimen in a Mini Museum Collection.

"Comparative anatomy not only brings to our knowledge races of animals very different from those with which we are acquainted, but supplies intermediate links in the gradation of structure, by means of which the different classes will probably be found so imperceptibly to run into one another, that they will no longer be accounted distinct, but only portions of one series, and show that the whole of animal creation forms a regular and connected chain.

These particulars, in which the bones of this animal differ from those of fishes, are sufficient to show, that although the mode of its progressive motion has induced me to place it in that class, I by no means consider it wholly a fish, when compared to other fishes, but rather view it in a similar light to those animals met with in New South Wales, which appear to be so many deviations from ordinary structure, for the purpose of making intermediate connecting links, to unite in closest manner the class of which the great chain of animated beings is composed." ~ Sir Everard Home, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London (June 23, 1814)

MARINE REPTILE FOSSIL, TEMPORAL RANGE: 250,000,000 to 90,000,000, LARGEST RECORDED EYE IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM: 2.64M (8.6FT) IN DIAMETER

Ichthyosaurs were marine reptiles with streamlined bodies, no neck, and smooth heads. They were air-breathing creatures with two nostrils situated far back on the top of the head, generally similar in shape to a modern porpoise, though larger species resemble tuna.

Like other marine reptiles, Ichthyosaurs likely fed on fish using their numerous sharp teeth and enormous eyes to locate prey in deep water. Most abundant and diverse during the Triassic and Jurassic Periods, their fossils have been uncovered around the world and were extant through the Early Cretaceous.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a fragment of an Ichthyosaur vertebra recovered from Jurassic Period formations in the United Kingdom. Recorded discoveries of partial Ichthyosaur fossils in this region date back to the 18th century, though they were often mistaken for fish. It wasn't until 1811 when Joseph Anning, brother of the famous fossil-hunter Mary Anning, discovered the remains of an Ichthyosaur which was later unearthed in its entirety by Ms. Anning and studied by surgeon Everard Home, that a better understanding of Ichthyosaurs began to develop.

Age of Dinosaurs marks the first appearance of this specimen in a Mini Museum Collection.

"A swift and powerful swimmer over short distances, the Mosasaur used surprise and the thrust of his muscular tail to outrun his prey with a short burst of speed." ~ Michael J. Everhart, Oceans of Kansas (2005)

Mosasaurs were among the last of the great Mesozoic marine reptile lines. Limited to the Cretaceous Period, these formidable predators ranged in size from 1.1m (3.3ft) to 17.4m (57 ft). Historically, they have often been imagined swimming in an undulating, snake-like fashion. However, recent soft-tissue impressions show that Mosasaurs had tail flukes and true flippers.

MARINE REPTILE FOSSIL, TEMPORAL RANGE: 92,000,000 to 66,000,000

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a fragment of a Mosasaur tooth from Morocco. Mosasaur skulls were flexible and their jaws are double-hinged. While this arrangement probably allowed a Mosasaur to swallow prey whole, the alignment of a Mosasaur's teeth with "bony crypts" to protect emerging teeth also suggests Mosasaurs likely crushed bones as frequently as they tore into flesh. In fact, numerous examples of Mosasaur tooth punctures in the thick shells of large ammonites have been uncovered in recent years, providing a visceral example of their power.

Mosasaur made its first appearance in the Third Edition of the Mini Museum with a jaw fragment from the muzzle of a juvenile Tylosaurus proriger.

"This then was the giraffe among dinosaurs..." ~ Elmer Riggs, 1903, Paleontologist and the first to describe Brachiosaurus

Perhaps known best for their powerful silhouette, Brachiosaurus roamed western North America during the Late Jurassic. Their long necks reached upwards of 9m (30ft), sloping sharply towards muscular shoulders. Brachiosaurus' long front limbs, inclined higher than the dinosaur's hips, set the brachiosaurid body type apart from other sauropods, most of which have conversely longer hindlimbs than forelimbs.

The skull of Brachiosaurus features distinctive nasal openings placed above the eyes, which originally led paleontologists to believe that the nostrils were located at the top of the head, but that has come under debate versus a more traditional tip-of-snout placement and perhaps relegating the nasal crest to an ornamental status.

DINOSAUR FOSSIL, SAUROPOD, TEMPORAL RANGE: 154,000,000 to 153,000,000, ESTIMATED AVERAGE HEIGHT: 45FT (13.7M)

An adult Brachiosaurus consumed an estimated 440 to 880 lbs (200 to 400 kgs) of plant matter daily, eating about 2/3rds of its day. They could consume quite rapidly since sauropods did not chew; as indicated by their teeth, they instead relied on their gut for digestion. Although fossils have not been found in great numbers, brachiosaurids probably moved in herds to areas of fresh vegetation as they cleared areas.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a fragment of Brachiosaurus femur from the Morrison Formation in Utah. Even though it has been displaced by the titanosaurids, Brachiosaurus is still considered one of the heaviest dinosaurs, and their bodies experienced incredible physical stress. Unlike their relatively lighter distant cousins, the diplodocids, it is unlikely brachiosaurids reared much (if at all). However, their massive size would have placed them outside most predators' capabilities once fully grown.

Age of Dinosaurs marks the first appearance of this specimen in a Mini Museum Collection.

"We must confess that it is pleasing to think that the first residents of Earth to exceed the sound barrier were not humans, but rather diplodocus sauropods. Following their demise, a hiatus in supersonic motion of over a hundred million years ensued until this capability was rediscovered by our species." ~ Nathan Myhrvold & Philip Curry, "Supersonic sauropods? Tail dynamics in the diplodocids." Paleobiology 23.4 (1997)

With a long, whip-like tail, Diplodocus was one of the longest dinosaurs, stretching out to 33m (110ft) from head to tail. Balancing 10-16 metric tons across such a long frame required strong legs with semi-fixed ankles and toes. Studies of the diplodocoid body plan suggest these creatures could not only rear up quite easily, but could also maintain the position for a long time to feed.

The Diplodocus body plan balanced an exceptionally long, slender neck with an exceptionally long, slender tail, which some theories suggest the sauropod (and similarly constructed diplodocids) could have cracked, whiplike, to generate supersonic noises or strike at predators.

DINOSAUR FOSSIL, SAUROPOD, TEMPORAL RANGE: 154,000,000 to 152,000,000, MAXIMUM KNOWN LENGTH: 32M (105FT)

The forelimbs were shorter than the hindlimbs, and the front feet boasted a single large claw each. Some reconstructions posit spike-like osteoderms running the length of the Diplodocus dorsum. In addition, Diplodocus wielded a small, shallow head with nostrils toward the top and peg-like teeth at the front of the jaws: the classic diplodocoid skull plan, which differs radically from the chunkier, higher-crowned heads of the other major sauropod subgroup, the macronarians. This—not to mention the fact that diplodocoids are reckoned to have boasted the highest tooth-replacement rates of all vertebrates—suggests a different feeding mode.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs comes from the heel and ankle bones that once held up this enormous creature (astragalus and calcaneum). They were recovered near the historic Bone Cabin Quarry in Montana. Part of the vast Morrison Formation, the quarry was discovered in 1897 and named for a local sheepherder's cabin which was constructed out of dinosaur bones.

Diplodocus made its first appearance in the Mini Museum Core Sample. Age of Dinosaurs marks the first appearance of this specimen in a larger Mini Museum Collection.

"Originally sought as a precious substance, Burmese amber retains its mystique, but now scientifically as a window to a unique, highly diverse Mesozoic microbiota worthy of intense exploration." ~ David A. Grimaldi, Curator, American Museum of Natural History "Fossiliferous Cretaceous Amber from Myanmar (Burma): Its Rediscovery, Biotic Diversity, and Paleontological Significance" (2002)

Amber is a beautiful substance used by humans for thousands of years. Beginning as plant resin, amber forms very slowly under tremendous heat and pressure for millions of years, eventually becoming a low-density, amorphous solid. The process of molecular polymerization also preserves traces of climate and life in nearly perfect condition.

The Age of Dinosaurs Collection contains two different amber specimens from the Late Cretaceous Period. The Large and Touch versions feature a small, polished bead of amber from the Hukawng Valley of Northern Myanmar (Burma) which also includes a small arthropod (insect, arachnid, etc). The Small version contains a fragment of rough amber from the ancient coastal deposits of the Black Creek Formation (North Carolina, USA).

PLANT FOSSIL, TEMPORAL RANGE: LATE CRETACEOUS PERIOD

Burmese amber inclusions display a high diversity of terrestrial fauna and flora. At least 228 families of organisms have been recorded, including many new taxa. Arthropods (insects) are predominant, with mites, ticks, termites, and lice being the most abundant. Scientists have also discovered plants, reptiles, seeds, pollen, feathers (birds and dinosaurs), and even partial specimens of larger organisms.

Amber from the Black Creek Formation of North America is generally found in isolated pockets in the form of small pellets. These fragmented pieces, typical of coastal deposits, often contain commuted plant remains.

Baltic Amber from the Paleogene Period appeared in the First Edition of the Mini Museum. Age of Dinosaurs marks the first appearance of the older Cretaceous Period in a Mini Museum Collection.

"The description of new genera and new species of dinosaurs discovered recently in North Africa completely changed the vision we had." ~ Philippe Taquet, Paleontologist and former President of the French Academy of Sciences, "The Dinosaurs of Maghreb: the History of their Discovery"

Discovered high in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco in 1999, Atlasaurus was a specialized sauropod genus from the mid-Jurassic.

DINOSAUR FOSSIL, SAUROPOD, TEMPORAL RANGE: 167,700,000 to 164,700,000

Estimated at about 50 ft (15m) long and weighing 15 tons, this sauropod had extremely long limbs paired with a relatively short neck. This high-shouldered profile is typically thought to be an adaptation for elevated foraging.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs comes from the High Central Atlas region of Morocco. During the mid-Jurassic Period, the region was a wet floodplain. Bone sites and trackways in the sand/siltstone here reflect a significant diversity in saurischians comprising several sauropods and at least three types of theropods. Globally, the rapid development of sauropod species during this time saw their large body sizes double in less than 40,000,000 years.

Age of Dinosaurs marks the first appearance of this specimen in a Mini Museum Collection.

"At last, in the top of the ledge where the softer overlying beds form a divide, a kind of saddle, I saw eight of the tail bones in exact position. It was a beautiful sight. Part of the ledge had weathered away and several of the vertebra had weathered out and the beautifully preserved centra lay on the ground. It is by far the best-looking dinosaur prospect I have ever found. The part exposed is worth preserving anyway." ~ Earl Douglass on finding the first Apatosaurus skeleton on August 17, 1909

First described in 1879, Apatosaurus is one of the best-known of all sauropods. In the public mind, this popularity is due to early confusion that led to the skulls of other sauropods being mounted on their skeletons under the name of Brontosaurus.

DINOSAUR FOSSIL, SAUROPOD, TEMPORAL RANGE: 152,000,000 to 151,000,000, MAXIMUM KNOWN LENGTH: 75FT (23M)

Typical of the diplodocid design, Apatosaurus had a long neck and a whip-tapered tail. Reaching lengths of 75 ft (23m) and 20 tons, they were more heavily built than related diplodocids like Diplodocus. In particular, they had a much thicker neck which some studies suggest might have been used in dominance battles much like bull giraffes do today.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a fragment of Apatosaurus bone, recovered on private land from the Morrison Formation in Utah. One of the most studied fossil beds of the upper Jurassic Period, the region was once home to a large floodplain ecosystem 150,000,000 years ago.

Age of Dinosaurs marks the first appearance of this specimen in a Mini Museum Collection.

"Among the numerous interesting facts which the researches of modern geologists have brought to light, there is none more extraordinary than the discovery that there was a period when the earth was peopled by oviparous quadrupeds of a most appalling magnitude." ~ Dr. Gideon Mantell, discoverer of Iguanodon in "The Geological Age of Reptiles" (1831)

In 1853, twenty-one preeminent men sat down to dinner inside a giant concrete Iguanodon. The host was Sir Richard Owen, the man who coined the word Dinosauria and established the first framework of classification for dinosaurs. Much has changed since that auspicious dinner, including our understanding of these large, ornithopod dinosaurs.

Reaching lengths of 30 ft (9m) and weighing upwards of 5 tons, Iguanodons were prolific herbivores spanning the Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous Periods.

DINOSAUR FOSSIL, ORNITHISCHIAN, TEMPORAL RANGE: 126,000,000 to 113,000,000

These dinosaurs had a horny beak whose superficial resemblance resulted in their name ("iguana tooth"). They used this for cropping vegetation and had teeth for shearing and masticating fibers. Their diet consisted of low-growing ferns and horsetails which grew along rivers and swamps.

Considered primarily quadrupedal today, though perhaps capable of bipedal motion too, Iguanodons had specialized fingers on their forelimbs, suggesting multiple functions. The first digit (referred to as a thumb) was conical and sharply pointed and has often been theorized as a defensive weapon.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a fragment of Iguanodon bone from the Wealden Clay deposits on the Isle of Wight in the United Kingdom. The first recognized Iguanodon fossils come from the same region, discovered in Sussex back in 1822 by Mary Ann Mantell and her husband Dr. Gideon Algernon Mantell. Dr. Mantell would also be the first to realize that Iguanodon was not a lumbering giant as depicted in concrete, but a more light-footed grazer in line with our modern understanding.

Age of Dinosaurs marks the first appearance of this specimen in a Mini Museum Collection.

"Stegosaurus must have been a grand performer under attack— a five-ton ballet dancer with an armor-plated tutu of flipping bony triangles and a swinging war club." ~ Robert T. Bakker, The Dinosaur Heresies

The plates and spikes of Stegosaurus are called osteoderms, bony deposits that form in the skin rather than growing as extensions of the skeleton. Lacking an anchor to the skeleton, some scientists believe that Stegosaurus's plates would provide limited mechanical protection. The current scientific thinking leans towards temperature regulation as the primary function.

DINOSAUR FOSSIL, ORNITHISCHIAN, TEMPORAL RANGE: 155,000,000 to 150,000,000

Using volumetric CT scans, researchers have been able to reconstruct 3D models of Stegosaurus plates, highlighting the likely paths of soft tissues and possible vascular pathways. This complex analysis shows promise when compared to similar structures in Alligators. New research also indicates that the thick osteoderms on the backs of Crocodilians store and neutralize the effect of lactic acid during periods of intense anaerobic activity.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs comes from a fragmented Stegosaurus plate recovered and reconstructed by paleontologist Gary Olson.

Stegosaurus made its first appearance in the Second Edition of the Mini Museum.

"The observed instances of periosteal reactive bone and healing fractures are consistent with such non-random trauma, and the elevated rates of abnormal bone morphology within the frill bones are consistent with predictions from modeling of horn-to-horn combat. This suggests that the cranial ornamentation of ceratopsids, particularly Triceratops, was not only for visual display but that the horns also had a real role in physical combat." ~ Andrew A. Farke, Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology "Evidence of Combat in Triceratops" (2009)

Triceratops belongs to a large family of dinosaurs known as the Ceratopsids. Ceratopsids lived during the Late Cretaceous Period. All Ceratopsids are quadrupeds with bony frills, horns, and beak-like mouths.

In adulthood, Triceratops measured 29ft (9m) long and 10ft (3m) tall, with the head comprising nearly one-third the overall length. Studies of the incidence of lesions in the cranium and frill suggest that the Triceratops used its horns in combat and the frill was an adaptation for protection. In other studies, it was found that about one-third of the adult horn was hollow at its base, thus making it unlikely that the horns would be used for combat when they could be easily damaged.

DINOSAUR FOSSIL , ORNITHISCHIAN, TEMPORAL RANGE: 68,000,000 to 66,000,000, SUPRAORBITAL BROW HORN LENGTH: 3.3FT (1M)

Assessments of progressive changes in horn orientation and shape during adolescence indicate the possible visual identification of juveniles, and eventually the onset of sexual maturity. Furthermore, the horns may have been important for sexual displays (sexual dimorphism) or even species recognition amid large herds.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a fragment of brow horn recovered on private land near Lance Creek, Wyoming. Once a coastal plain threaded with streams along the Western Interior Seaway, the Lance Formation is one of the most productive locations for Late Cretaceous Period fossils all the way up to the end of the Cretaceous. Studies indicate rainfall amounts increased dramatically after the K-Pg boundary event, with an influx of sediments and widespread swamps.

Triceratops made its first appearance in the First Edition of the Mini Museum. The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs comes from a different Triceratops found in the same region.

"The armor are bones that form within the skin, just like crocodiles." ~ Ken Carpenter, Director USU Eastern Prehistoric Museum

Covered in rows of bony plates and wielding a powerful clubbed tail, the Ankylosaurs are one of the most distinctive and successful of all dinosaur families. Spread across more than 90 million years of the fossil record, various species of this sturdy dinosaur can be found on every continent on earth.

The plates of an Ankylosaurus were not part of the skeleton, but rather formed within the skin. This type of growth is called an osteoderm. Osteoderms usually begin with small nodules of cartilage around which more dense material forms.

DINOSAUR FOSSIL, ORNITHISCHIAN, TEMPORAL RANGE: 68,000,000 to 66,000,000

Osteoderms are found in many different and unrelated species from reptiles and amphibians to mammals, fish, and of course dinosaurs. They sometimes form fantastic structures such as the shells of the armadillo and glyptodon, or the tall, dorsal plates and tail spikes of Stegosaurus.

Recent studies have shown that most of the osteoderms on Ankylosaurus were relatively thin, and bound together by a complex arrangement of collagen fiber bundles. This structure kept the armor light and flexible as the plates grew larger and thickened over time. This finding is true even of the bony "tail clubs" found on some species.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs comes from Ankylosaurus dermal plates recovered by paleontologists working on private land. Large and oval in shape, these scutes are consistent with the armor that protected the neck and shoulders of Ankylosaurus from the sharp teeth of predators.

Ankylosaurus made its first appearance in the Third Edition of the Mini Museum.

"The domes could withstand considerable impact force at certain closing speeds, and that stress and strain would dissipate efficiently throughout the dorsal portion of the skull before reaching the brain." ~ Eric Snively and Andrew Cox "Structural mechanics of pachycephalosaur crania permitted head-butting behavior." Palaeontologia Electronica (2008)

Instantly recognizable by their massive frontoparietal domes, Pachycephalosaurs ("thick-headed lizard") were a group of bipedal ornithischian dinosaurs that roamed the Late Cretaceous Period.

DINOSAUR FOSSIL, ORNITHISCHIAN, TEMPORAL RANGE: 70,000,000 to 66,000,000, DOME THICKNESS: 30X THICKER THAN A HUMAN SKULL

Often ringed with knobs and spikes, most scientists believe the domes were used in ritual display, and perhaps violent clashes, to establish dominance for reproductive access. This hypothesis is further backed by studies of the orientation of bone fibers which indicate that the domes evolved to resist stresses induced by head-butting.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a fragment of a Pachycephalosaurus skull dome recovered on private land from the Hell Creek formation in South Dakota. Though most finds have occurred in the Northern Hemisphere, particularly in North America and Central Asia, fossils have also been reported in Madagascar, suggesting a global distribution.

Age of Dinosaurs marks the first appearance of this specimen in a Mini Museum Collection.

"Hadrosaurs grew rapidly, and quantifying their growth is key to understanding life-history interactions between predators and prey during the Late Cretaceous." ~ Lisa Noelle Cooper, "Relative growth rates of predator and prey dinosaurs reflect effects of predation." Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 275.1651 (2008)

Hadrosaurs were a large family of ornithischian dinosaurs from the Cretaceous Period. Related to Iguanodons, they are known primarily for their "duck-bills" which are in fact elongated rostral bone structures which give the appearance of a beak, but actually housed hundreds of small teeth that allowed these giant herbivores to grind through all manner of plant material, including rotten wood.

Hadrosaur fossils have been found on all continents. Evidence of their migratory nature has been recovered, but recent studies suggest that some species, those in polar regions, may have settled in place year round.

DINOSAUR FOSSIL, ORNITHISCHIAN, TEMPORAL RANGE: 86,000,000 to 66,000,000, EDMONTOSAURUS RANGE: 73,000,000 to 66,000,000

These large herbivores ate twigs, berries and coarse plant matter. Much is known about their diet as fossilized stomach contents have been identified. They foraged on low-level foliage from conifers and deciduous shrubs and trees.

Recent studies suggest that Hadrosaurs, which could reach the size of a Tyrannosaurus rex, grew at phenomenal speeds, in part to avoid predation by therapods. Compare this with T. rex, which took three times that long to grow to full size.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a fragment of Hadrosaur bone recovered on private land in South Dakota from the Lance Formation. Once a coastal plain threaded with streams along the Western Interior Seaway, the Lance Formation is one of the most productive locations for Late Cretaceous Period fossils all the way up to the end of the Cretaceous. Studies indicate rainfall amounts increased dramatically after the K-Pg boundary event, with an influx of sediments and widespread swamps.

Hadrosaur made its first appearance in the First Edition of the Mini Museum.

"One of these strange animals, whose appearance would be frightful did they occur alive at the present day, may have been of the size of a thrush." ~ Georges Cuvier Théorie de la terre / Essay on the Theory of the Earth (1821)

Spanning more than 160 million years across the fossil record, Pterosaurs were a diverse group of flying reptiles that dominated the skies of the Mesozoic Era. Juveliles of some species were as small as a bat or a modern bird, and others, such as Quetzalcoatlus, were the size of a giraffe with a wingspan of 33ft (10m) when fully-grown. Fossil evidence shows that at least some pterosaur species grew furlike "pycnofibers," or bristles, perhaps suggesting that these creatures were warm-blooded.

AVIAN REPTILE FOSSIL, TEMPORAL RANGE: 228,000,000 to 66,000,000

By the Late Jurassic Period, birds and pterosaurs overlapped extensively in many ecosystems. Some interpret this to suggest niche partitioning limited direct competition, while other scientists speculate that the decline of smaller pterosaurs coincided with a radiation of comparably sized birds during that interval which could indicate direct competition. This may also explain the larger body sizes seen among Pterosaurs of the Late Cretaceous, a change that may have doomed pterosaurs to extinction.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a fragment of a pterosaur wing bone from fragmentary remains gathered from across the world. Broadly speaking, pterosaurs had proportionately large, elongated heads and modified hand bones that supported membranous wings attaching to the sides of their bodies and to their legs. Extensive air pockets made their large skulls lighter, and their skeletons in general - like those of birds - had hollow, thin-walled bones.

Pterosaur made its first appearance in the First Edition of the Mini Museum.

"This genus may be distinguished from any known Dinosaurs by the vertebrae, which are peculiarly modified to ensure lightness." ~ Othniel Charles Marsh (1877)

Allosaurus was one of the most dominant predators of the Late Jurassic Period. Reaching 30ft (9m) in length, this large theropod is known for its powerful, three-fingered forelimbs, wide gape, and iconic "hornlets" over the eyes. Many Allosaurus fossils show signs of injury typical of an active hunter of sizable game like fellow Jurassic icon, Stegosaurus. It is also theorized that Allosaurus might have hunted in groups in order to take down sauropods as well, though the presence of multiple Allosaurus specimens in proximity to sauropods at mass kill sites may simply represent solitary individuals brought together by a common food source.

DINOSAUR FOSSIL, THEROPOD, TEMPORAL RANGE: 155,000,000 to 145,000,000

Based on the Allosaurus skull's ultra-strong structure, the more massive upper versus lower jaw, and the beefy neck musculature, one hypothesis suggests Allosaurus may have attacked prey with a high-impact, "slash-and-tear" wallop of the maxilla, likened to a hatchet strike. An alternative idea proposes Allosaurus employed a more "conventional" muscle-powered bite, using its tremendous gape to seize the flesh of large animals—the relatively small teeth allowing a greater vertical bite radius—and a downward neck thrust to amplify impaling force.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a fragment of an Allosaurus vertebra recovered on private land from the Morrison Formation in Utah. Named the state fossil in 1988, Allosaurus is one of the most plentiful dinosaurs found in Utah's bonebeds, including the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry which holds the remains of nearly 50 individual juveniles and subadults.

Age of Dinosaurs marks the first appearance of this specimen in a Mini Museum Collection.

"Spinosaurus appears to have been poorly adapted to bipedal terrestrial locomotion. The forward position of the center of mass within the ribcage may have enhanced balance during foot-propelled locomotion in water." ~ Nizar Ibrahim, Paleontologist, University of Chicago, Semiaquatic Adaptations in a Giant Predatory Dinosaur." Science 345.6204 (2014)

Topping out at just over 59ft long (18m), Spinosaurus is one of the largest carnivorous dinosaurs ever discovered. This family of semi-aquatic theropods also happens to be among the most surprising creatures in the fossil record.

Nearly everything about Spinosaurus defies traditional thoughts about carnivorous dinosaurs. Spinosaurids are the only known family of semi-aquatic dinosaurs. They also had long, narrow skulls, almost crocodile-like in appearance, and their jaws were lined with conical teeth instead of the curved, blade-like ziphodont teeth of most theropods.

DINOSAUR FOSSIL, THEROPOD, TEMPORAL RANGE: 112,000,000 to 72,000,000, MAXIMUM KNOWN SIZE: 18M (59FT)

Of course, Spinosaurus also had elongated neural spines forming a massive dorsal sail. In some species, the spines in the namesake sail measure more than 2 meters in length, providing the framework for an impressive structure that would rise high above the water.

The Age of Dinosaurs collection contains two different Spinosaurus specimens. The Large features a fragment of a Spinosaurus vertebra which includes the neural spines. The Small includes a fragment of a Spinosaurus tooth. Both specimens come from the Kem Kem Beds of Morocco. During the Cretaceous Period, this region was part of a vast river system. In recent years, members of the Spinosaurus family have been found in many parts of the world, including Europe, South America, and even Australia.

Spinosaurus made its first appearance in the Third Edition of the Mini Museum.

"You bred raptors?" ~ Dr. Alan Grant, Jurassic Park

Known popularly as "raptors," dromaeosaurids were a diverse family of feathered theropod dinosaurs. In addition to being feathered, members of Dromaeosauridae had long tails and an elongated "sickle claw" on the second toe. While this distinctive body plan suggests a link to birds, scientists are still unclear on the exact connection between these two successful evolutionary lines, though there is some evidence that smaller species could at least glide.

For many years scientists had hypothesized about group hunting behavior in dromaeosaurids, a natural question given their size in relationship to certain prey. The exciting discovery and analysis of a fossil theropod trackway in 2007 uncovered six parallel and closely spaced trackways.

DINOSAUR FOSSIL, THEROPOD, TEMPORAL RANGE: 167,000,000 to 66,700,000, ESTIMATED SPECIMEN AGE: 66,800,000 to 66,000,000

Elsewhere, theropod fossils have been uncovered in small groups, sometimes near the remains of herbivore dinosaurs. This has been taken as evidence of coordinated packs working together to hunt. However, other interpretations suggest that the theropods were solitary hunters which were drawn to previously killed carcasses; a mobbing behavior.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs comes from a selection of fragmented bones (tibia, ischium, and metatarsals) from larger dromaeosaurid species recovered on private land in the Hell Creek Formation of South Dakota. Like birds, dromaeosaurids had a global distribution and varied widely in size, from smaller than a modern-day chicken to large, powerful predators measuring more than 18ft (6m) in length from tooth-to-tail.

Dromaeosaurids made their first appearance in the Fourth Edition of the Mini Museum.

"We need to start thinking of dinosaurs as not just brutes and not just monsters, and not just things with sharp teeth and sharp claws, but as really active, intelligent, energetic animals that oftentimes had keen senses. An animal like T. rex was a predator that used brain and brawn: its big brain, its great sense of smell and its really keen sense of hearing were probably as important to it, if not more so, than its sharp claws and its sharp teeth and its big jaw muscles." ~ Steve Brusatte, Paleontologist, University of Edinburgh, author of "The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs: A New History of a Lost World" (2018)

Measuring 40ft (12m) in length and weighing upwards of 14 tons, Tyrannosaurus rex was one of the largest and most powerful terrestrial predators in history. The most advanced in an 80 million year chain of tyrannosaurid evolution, T. rex had heavy, deep skulls reinforced with sutures, lightened by hollow chambers.

DINOSAUR FOSSIL, THEROPOD, TEMPORAL RANGE: 68,000,000 to 66,000,000, ESTIMATED BITE FORCE: 8,000 to 12,800 POUNDS

Various mechanical studies of T. rex power place the "Tyrant Lizard King" firmly at the top of the charts. Paired with this incredible power, T. rex also had some of the largest teeth of any carnivorous dinosaur, with the largest measuring 1ft (30 cm).

Despite popular depictions of poor depth perception, studies show that when compared to other giant theropods, tyrannosaurids had a wide postorbital skull which resulted in forward-facing eyes and acute binocular vision. The spine of a Tyrannosaurus Rex was subject to tremendous force. The size and strength of the vertebrae were essential to providing support for this enormous predator, but the entire apparatus also had to allow for rapid changes in movement and critical striking speed.

The Age of Dinosaurs collection contains two different T. rex specimens. The Large and Touch versions feature a fragment of a T. rex tooth, and the Small version contains a fragment of a T. rex vertebra. Both specimens were recovered on private land from the Hell Creek Formation, the vertebra from South Dakota and the tooth fragments from Montana.

The Tyrannosaurus rex tooth made its first appearance in the First Edition of the Mini Museum and the vertebra first appeared in the Core Sample.

"The species extinctions prior to the generally assumed impact event implied by the Ir anomaly, and the long recovery period of the ecosystem thereafter cannot be explained by a single impact, but suggest that multiple causes may be responsible such as climatic changes, volcanism, a sea level drop, production of warm saline bottom water and the chemical consequences associated with increased salinity." ~ Dr. Gerta Keller, Princeton University, "Extinction, survivorship and evolution of planktic foraminifera across the Cretaceous/Tertiary boundary at El Kef, Tunisia." Marine Micropaleontology 13.3 (1988)

The large-scale geological event known as the End-Cretaceous Mass Extinction had a profound influence on life on our planet. Three-quarters of all life on Earth perished during this time, from marine invertebrates like the ammonites, to the large avian and marine reptiles which had held their dominant place for so long, and of course the dinosaurs. In a geological instant, hundreds of non-avian dinosaur species, the product of more than 175,000,000 years of evolution, completely disappeared from the Earth.

EXTINCTION EVENT, VOLCANIC ROCK, DECCAN TRAPS ERUPTION DURATION: 66,800,000 to 66,000,000

In Age of Dinosaurs, we have opted to mark the end of the Mesozoic Era with the physical evidence behind the two leading theories for the death of the dinosaurs: the Chicxulub Asteroid Impact and the flood basalts of the Indian Subcontinent known as the Deccan Traps.

The Deccan Traps is one of the largest volcanic features on earth. Stretching across the Indian Subcontinent, the remnants of these powerful flood basalts reach depths of more than 1.2 miles (2,000m). The eruption of the Deccan Traps came in relatively fast pulses just before the recognized boundary between the Cretaceous and Paleogene Periods (c. 66.8 million years ago). Sulphur-dioxide released by this eruption is thought to have cooled the planet by as much as 2°C (3.6°F), a data point which is reflected in the study of extinction rates in many smaller forms of life including foraminifera as well as larger species like the dinosaurs.

The specimen in Age of Dinosaurs is a mixture of the portions of three distinct phases of the main eruption donated by Professor Gerta Keller of Princeton University. We are very grateful for Dr. Keller’s kind donation of this material which underlies a lifetime of work on this fascinating subject.

"Impact of a large earth-crossing asteroid would inject about 60 times the object's mass into the atmosphere as pulverized rock; a fraction of this dust would stay in the stratosphere for several years and be distributed worldwide. The resulting darkness would suppress photosynthesis, and the expected biological consequences match quite closely the extinctions observed in the paleontological record." ~ Dr. Luis Alvarez and Dr. Walter Alvarez, "Extraterrestrial cause for the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction." Science 208.4448 (1980)

The cause of this mass extinction event is an ongoing and often contentious debate in the scientific community. Did the extinction happen rapidly or was it the product of a long period of change in climate? Or perhaps the culmination of both factors?

As noted above, we have opted to mark the end of the Mesozoic Era with the physical evidence behind the two leading theories for the death of the dinosaurs: the flood basalts of the Indian Subcontinent known as the Deccan Traps and the Chicxulub Asteroid Impact.

EXTINCTION EVENT, METEORITIC GEOLOGICAL LAYER, CHICXULUB ESTIMATED IMPACT: 66,043,000

The Chicxulub Asteroid Impact (c. 66 million years ago) provides a dramatic exclamation point to the end of the Mesozoic. At a minimum, the Chicxulub impactor was 6 miles (9.6km) in diameter, and the energy released likely exceeded more than 100 million megatons. Evidence of massive fires and mega-tsunamis traced to this event have been found in many areas of the world, as well as a fine layer of the element Iridium which is known today as the K-Pg Boundary Layer.

The discovery of this global layer and the eventual hypothesis is credited to Nobel Laureate Dr. Luis Alvarez and his son Dr. Walter Alvarez. The specimen in the Mini Museum is a mixture of the K-Pg Boundary Layer samples taken from across North America and Europe.

The K-Pg Boundary made its first appearance in the First Edition of the Mini Museum. Age of Dinosaurs is the first appearance for the Deccan Traps specimen.

"The public image of dinosaurs is tainted by extinction. It's hard to accept dinosaurs as a success when they are all dead. But the fact of ultimate extinction should not make us overlook the absolutely unsurpassed role dinosaurs played in the history of life." ~ Robert T. Bakker, Paleontologist, "The Dinosaur Heresies" (1986)

The Touch is a special version of the Mini Museum where all of the specimens are accessible for careful study. As pictured here, the Age of Dinosaurs Touch version comes in a classic, glass-topped riker display case. The public release of the Touch includes the same 32 specimens featured in the Large acrylic version.

Please Note: The Touch is not a toy and it is not intended for children. The specimens can be removed from their individual acrylic jars for careful study. We say "careful study" here because many are quite delicate.

As with past editions, the Large and the Small versions will arrive in a handsome Display Box, protected by a Custom Microfiber Pouch.

Each Mini Museum also comes with a Certificate of Authenticity and a 160-page, hardbound book we call the Companion Guide.

The Companion Guide is a starting point for learning more about the specimens in the collection, details about our process, and additional references so that you can continue exploring on your own. The white cover is also useful when displaying the Mini Museum to larger groups, or when you have a teething raptor on your hands.