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A 280-million-year-old fossil, thought to be a well-preserved example of an ancient reptile, turned out to be largely fake, according to new research.
The scientific name of the fossil, which was first discovered in the Italian Alps in 1931, is Tridentinosaurus antiquus. Scientists thought the dark, deep outlines of the lizard-like body embedded in the rock were skin and soft tissue, and thought the fossil was a puzzle piece for understanding early reptile evolution.
The fossil has been cited in books and articles for decades, but no one has ever studied it in detail. The remains, housed in the collections at the Museum of Nature and Humanity at the University of Padua in Italy, have raised many questions about the exact nature of the creature it was alive with, as no similar examples have been found.
A new, detailed analysis revealed that the dark color of the fossil was not preserved genetic material, but simply black paint covering a few bones and carved rock. The researchers behind the study reported their findings Feb. 15 in the journal Paleontology.
Lead study author Dr. D., a postdoctoral researcher in paleobiology at University College Cork in Ireland. “The body contours of this fossil specimen are the same color as the actual fossilized soft tissues of plants and animals,” Valentina Rossi said in an email. “Therefore, it was impossible to accurately identify the dark material without the use of diagnostic techniques.”
This statement draws attention to the new information that can be obtained by re-examining old and previously studied fossil samples in museum collections using the latest technological methods.
detect fraud
Reptiles first appeared between the Carboniferous and Permian periods, approximately 310 million to 320 million years ago. But understanding the evolution of these scaly vertebrates depends on what paleontologists uncover in the fossil record, and the diversity of early reptile animals is a knowledge gap that researchers are still trying to fill.
Even rarer among ancient finds are fossils containing soft tissue that have the potential to contain important biological information such as DNA.
When the specimen was discovered, researchers thought the fossil might provide a rare insight into reptile evolution.
“The fossil was believed to be unique because at that time there were no other examples of this preservation in a vertebrate fossil from the same geographic area and geological period,” Rossi said.
But the color of the so-called skin was similar to those observed in fossil plants found in similar rocks, Rossi said.
There were oddities about the find, such as the general absence of visible bones, including skull bones, although the body did not appear completely flat. So the initial assessment was that the sample was the mummy of an ancient reptile.
“A plausible explanation is that the bones were hidden under a layer of skin and therefore could not be seen,” Rossi said. “There are several examples of dinosaur mummies where the bones are still wrapped in skin preserved in 3D, similar to human mummies.”
Impressed by the increasing uncertainty surrounding the fossil, Rossi and his colleagues began their work in 2021 by examining the fossil with ultraviolet photographs. Rossi said the analysis revealed that the sample was covered in a thick coating.
“Coating fossils with varnish is an ancient preservation method, because in the past there were no other suitable methods to protect fossils from natural decay,” said study co-author Mariagabriella Fornasiero, curator of paleontology at the Museum of Nature and Humanity. expression.
Hoping to find biological information about the fossil beneath the coating, the team used powerful microscopes to analyze samples of the remains in different wavelengths of light.
Instead, researchers determined that the body outline was carved into rock and painted with “animal charcoal,” a commercial pigment made by burning animal bones that was used about 100 years ago. The carving also explained why it retained such a realistic shape, rather than looking flatter like a real fossil, for example.
“The answers to all our questions were before us; we had to study this fossil specimen in detail to uncover its secrets – perhaps even the ones we didn’t want to know,” Rossi said.
The result was unexpected, but explains why the fossil has baffled researchers for decades. Study co-author Evelyn Kustatscher, curator of paleontology at the South Tyrol Nature Museum in Bolzano, Italy, and coordinator of the research project, said in a statement that the latest research confirms that “it is not the world’s oldest mummy.”
Old secrets and new questions
Interestingly, there are real bones inside the fossil. The hind limbs are real, although in poor condition, and there are also traces of osteoderm or scale-like structures. Now researchers are trying to determine the exact age of the bones and which animal they belong to. The team is also studying the rock, which may preserve revealing details dating back 280 million years.
It’s not the first time fossil forgery has come to light, but Rossi said this type of forgery is unusual.
“The only fossil I know of that has been painted on rock is a fossilized crayfish that looks like a giant spider,” Rossi said. “However, in this particular case the type of paint has not been identified, but I would bet it is a carbon-based paint similar to the one we found in our fossil.”
Given the lack of records to accompany the fossil, including a description of what exactly was found in 1931, Rossi and his team cannot be completely sure that the forgery was intentional.
“Since some of the bones were visible, we believe someone was trying to uncover more of the skeleton by more or less digging in places where they expected to find the rest of the animal,” Rossi said. “The lack of suitable tools to prepare the hard rock did not help, and the application of paint in the end was perhaps a way of embellishing the final work. Unfortunately, whether all this was intentional or not, it led many experts to comment that this fossil was exceptionally well preserved.”
Rossi said using advanced techniques to study fossils could reveal their true nature.
“It is of great importance that the research uses new methods to take a closer look at previously studied findings,” said Fabrizio Nestola, professor of mineralogy and head of the University Museums Center at the University of Padua. expression.
“Tridentinosaurus is an example of how science can uncover old secrets and new questions can emerge from them,” Nestola added. “From now on, it will be our museum’s duty to process the newly gained knowledge and present it to the public in order to lead a scientific and cultural debate.”
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