Paleopython, Messel Pit Snake, 35 Inch Gallimimus such as crustaceans

such as crustaceans

fragments of pottery

also called the "Abbot Hill prints"

the earliest known example in a dinosaur

The dead shells were probably gently washed up into a shell bank on the margins of the Lower Jurassic seas

Paleopython, Messel Pit Snake, 35 Inch Gallimimus such as crustaceansThe Messel Pit is a no longer used quarry near the village of Messel which is located about 35 km south east of Frankfurt, Germany. The quarry was used to mine bituminous shale. On December 9, 1995, the Messel Pit was declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO. The Messel Pit has been known for its fossils since about 1900, but was not seriously excavated for scientific study until the 1970's. The Messel Pit was closed to collecting in 1974. Therefore