Dinosaur Tail Found Encased In Amber

                                                           

In the movie Jurassic Park, scientists extract dinosaur DNA from the bellies of prehistoric mosquitoes preserved in amber. Now researchers have done away with the middle man.

Palaeontologists have found the feathered tail of a 99 million-year-old dinosaur encased in a piece of amber at a jewellery market in Myanmar. The discovery, outlined today in the journal Current Biology, marks the first confirmed find of a dinosaur fossil trapped in the resin.

It is also the first time scientists have been able to observe intact dinosaur feathers, gleaning vital clues about their structure and colour. Co-author Ryan McKellar said while amber ­pieces could capture only “tiny snapshots” of ancient critters, they were invaluable. “They record microscopic ­details, three-dimensional arrange­ments and labile tissues that are difficult to study in other settings,” said Dr McKellar, of the Royal Saskatchewan Museum in Canada.

“This is a new source of information that is worth researching with intensity.”

Amber is fossilised tree resin that often traps bugs and plant fragments before it hardens.

Biologists have found mating flies, stingless bees, midges, ants, wasps, beetles, spiders and mammals’ hair in chunks of the yellowish gemstone.

Some of the finds are highly significant. In March, US researchers reported finding the forerunner of the malaria parasite in a 100 million-year-old biting insect fossilised in amber from Myanmar.

Prehistoric feathers have previously been discovered in amber from Canada and France, but it was impossible to tell whether they came from dinosaurs or birds.

“In this piece of amber, we ­finally have skeletal remains that allow us to pin down the source animal and say that we are dealing with a dinosaur,” Dr McKellar told The Australian.

CAT scans and microscope studies revealed the 4cm-long tail was flexible, not fused like a bird’s. The team believes it comes from a juvenile coelurosaur, a huge dinosaur group that included the tyrannosaurs.

Feathers along each side appear pale underneath and brown on top, although Dr McKellar said their preservation in amber could have changed the colouring. He dismissed any suggestion the find could be used to clone dinosaurs, Jurassic Park-style.

“Recent work has suggested that it is almost impossible to preserve DNA in amber for thousands of years, let alone ­millions.”

In separate research, scientists have found one of the oldest known tumours in a 255 million-year-old fossil of a predator known as a “gorgonopsian”.

US researchers found a benign tumour called a “compound odontoma” in the jawbone of a Tanzanian gorgonopsian, one of a group of land carnivores that preceded mammals and could grow to the size of polar bears.

Odontomas are tumours made of dental material. Until now their appearance in the fossil record has been restricted to more recent creatures such as mammoths and prehistoric deer.

The new find is not the oldest known cancer — that honour belongs to a 300 million-year-old fish.

By John Ross 

With many thanks to The Australian

                                                                

More on Dinosaurs and Prehistoric creatures:

Walking With Dinosaurs: Feathered, Furry and Fierce

Earliest Big Cat Fossil Found in Tibet

"Chicken From Hell’ Dinosaur Gets A Proper Name

Chinese Jurassic Park Yields Incredible Feathered Dino Find

Dinosaur Bones Found Near Red Sea

The Pelagornis Sandersi: Fossil Find Reveals Largest Flying Bird

Ancient Flying Reptile Named After 'Avatar' Creature

Closest Living Relative of The Ancient Elephant Bird Is Tiny

Two Jurassic Mini Mammal Species Discovered in China

Researchers Say They've Found The Biggest Dinosaur Ever

Kronosaurus Dinosaur Jaw Found In Outback Queensland

The Brontosaurus Is Officially Back

Kunbarrasaurus Ieversi: Australia's Newest Dinosaur 

Tiny Bat Wing Dinosaur Discovered

What Killed The Dinosaurs?

Titanosaurs: The Largest Animals Ever To Walk The Earth 

Timurlengia Euotica: The Missing Link to Tyrannosaurus Rex

Archaeopteryx: The Transitional Fossil 

When Did The Dinosaurs Become Extinct? 

Ancient Sea Monster The ­First Vegetarian Marine Reptile

Spiclypeus Shipporum: New Dinosaur Species Sported Uniquely Spiked Shield

T-Rex Cooed With Mouth Wide Shut

Prehistoric Marsupial Lion Was The Size Of A Squirrel

Jurassic ‘Sea Monster’ From Scottish Loch

Psittacosaurus: Chinese Parrot Lizard Dinosaur First Found To Use Camouflage 

Scientists Discover A Mysterious Prehistoric Shark

'Beardog' Discovery Offers Clues As To How Canines Evolved 

Austroposeidon Magnificus: Brazil’s Biggest Dinosaur Has Been Rediscovered

Savannasaurus Elliottorum: Wide-Hipped Dinosaur the Size of a Bus Once Trod Across Australia

Ancient 400-Pound Salmon Fought With Dagger-Like Teeth

Newfound Ancient 'Sea Monster' Is Largest Yet from Antarctica

 

The Foxfire Diamond

                                                                       

Little wonder they are so expensive!
The effort that goes in to finding them is extraordinary.

The largest gem-quality diamond ever found in North America is on display at the Smithsonian for three months in its rough, uncut state.

“It's a really unusual chance for people to see this rare diamond,” says Jeffrey Post, curator of the National Gem and Mineral Collection at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History. “It isn't something that happens very often. This may be the only chance in your life to see such a thing.”

Diamonds tend to be highly concentrated in small areas underground where ancient volcanic eruptions pushed magma upward through tubes. The magma solidified into an igneous rock called kimberlite. Scattered through the kimberlite left within the tube are diamonds that were pushed upwards with the magma.

The 187.63 carat Foxfire diamond was almost discarded when it was unearthed in August 2015 at the Diavik diamond mine, above the Arctic Circle in Canada's Northwest Territories. The mine was not known for large diamonds like the Foxfire, but rather much smaller stones. The chances of a large diamond coming through the sorting system were believed to be so slim that all large stones were assumed to be kimberlite, thus filtered and crushed. The Foxfire diamond could have been crushed, but because of its somewhat elongated shape, it slipped through the sifting screen. 

The name Foxfire pays homage to the aboriginal name for the aurora borealis, which Post says looks like "foxtails swishing away in the sky.” 

In June 2016, Deepak Sheth of Amadena Investments, who trades in historic or unique stones, purchased the uncut diamond at auction (the exact price has not been publicly disclosed) and then did an unusual thing. He allowed the Smithsonian's scientists to borrow it. 

“In some way, it's like diamonds are like meteorites from deep in the earth,” Post says.
Most diamonds appear to have been created between one and three billion years ago roughly a hundred miles beneath the surface of the Earth. Diamonds can help geologists understand Earth's history, says Post.

During past volcanic eruptions, “diamonds were brought to the surface, giving us a glimpse into a part of the Earth we can't otherwise study,” Post says.

In order to find out more about the Foxfire diamond's composition, Post exposed the uncut gemstone to different types of light and used a spectrograph to see how the various elements in the diamond were reflecting the light. A funny thing was discovered along the way.

“One of the interesting properties of this diamond is that if you go in a dark room and turn on a black light, it glows bright blue. It lights up the room,” Post says. “There are a number of diamonds that do this, but this does so quite a lot. This happens through trace amounts of nitrogen. By doing spectral analysis of that light, we can tell how much nitrogen might be there.”

It gets weirder.

“What is unusual, is that when you turn the light off [the diamond] continues to glow. 

                                                                  

First a deep orange color and then it fades to a creamy white glow. So that phosphorescence can tell us something about how that diamond was formed. . . . It gives us this interesting insight into its history that we wouldn't get just by looking at it.”

Larger diamonds have been found elsewhere in the world. South Africa's enormous Cullinan diamond weighed 3,106.75 carats before it was cut into numerous stones. But diamonds from North America are particularly valued because of their relatively clean provenance. Unlike many African diamonds, the stones that come from Canada's mines are not associated with conflicts or wars. Environmental protection standards are high. The microscopic maple leaves and polar bears etched into each diamond helps ensure that buyers know what they are getting.

This geology allows diamond mines to be relatively compact mining operations that can be restored to a healthy wild condition after mining operations are completed. The Canadian government requires that plans for restoration be made before mining even begins.

“With a diamond mine, it's not like oil where you have to pump it some place,” Post says. “You've got one hole in the ground that is a very well defined area, but the area around it can be pretty well returned [as habitat for wildlife]. This one mine, they are literally mining through a lake. In the end, this thing might very well fill up with water again and just be a deeper lake.”

With the passage of time, the Diavik mine will eventually become that deeper lake and for a brief period, the Foxfire diamond is available for anyone who wants to see it.
“It's a one time opportunity,” Post says.

The Foxfire diamond will be on view in the Harry Winston Gallery next to the Smithsonian's famous Hope Diamond at the National Museum of Natural History through February 16, 2017.



By Jackson Landers

With many thanks to The Smithsonian

Ome other posts on diamonds:

The Rare ‘Blue Moon’ Diamond Is All Set To Become The Most Expensive Jewel, When It Goes Up On Sale
 
‘Fascination’: Graff’s $40 Million Diamond Transformable Watch 

The World’s Priceless Treasures

Replica Of Louis XIV's Versailles Is The World’s Most Expensive Home - $416 million

The Most Expensive Substances In The World

Some Of The Rarest Jewels In The World

 The Most Expensive Things in the World

Argyle Violet Diamond Expected To Fetch Up To $4m At Auction

Ancient Gemstone Lapis Back In Fashion

The “Oppenheimer Blue" Diamond Sells For $57.6 million at Christie's

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The Rare ‘Blue Moon’ Diamond Is All Set To Become The Most Expensive Jewel, When It Goes Up On Sale
 
Replica Of Louis XIV's Versailles Is The World’s Most Expensive Home - $416 million

Argyle Violet Diamond Expected To Fetch Up To $4m At Auction

The Lesedi la Rona Diamond Could Fetch $US70m

Ancient Gemstone Lapis Back In Fashion

The “Oppenheimer Blue" Diamond Sells For $57.6 million at Christie's

Hermès Birkin Bag Sells For $US298,000
 
Padmanabhaswamy Temple Treasure: Worth $22 Billion 

The Bahia Emerald - The 400 Million Dollar Rock 

25 Things You Didn't Know About Jewelry

 The Royal Jewels

The Virgin Rainbow: World's Most Beautiful Opal

Elizabeth Taylor's famous pearl sells for $11.84m at NYC auction

Some Of The Rarest Jewels In The World

Pakistan Claims Koh-i-Noor Diamond      

Top Ten Lost Treasures of the World

Petra Diamond Miners in South Africa Unearth a ‘Magnificent’ and ‘Exceptional’ Discovery At Cullinan

A Look at a Legend: Elizabeth Taylor

Elizabeth Taylor Quotes

Elizabeth Taylor's Bulgari Jewellery Goes On Show In Melbourne

Dream Eco-Home Of Russian Hemp Tycoon Will Be Noosa’s Priciest Abode

                                                            

Egyptian Mummy And Temple 4200 Years Old With Well-Preserved Art Revealed

                                                             

From the Guardian:

The mummy, bound with linen stuck together with plaster, was in a brightly coloured wooden sarcophagus buried near a temple from the era of the warrior king Thutmose III.

The tomb was likely to have belonged to a nobleman, Amenrenef, who would have been a servant of the royal household, the ministry said.

The archaeological team’s head, Myriam Seco Alvarez, said the mummy was adorned with many colourful decorations recalling religious symbols from ancient Egypt, such as the goddesses Isis and Nephtys displaying their wings, and the four sons of Horus.

Evidence suggests that the practice of wrapping bodies to preserve them after death in Egypt dates back as far as 4500BC.

                                                             

Luxor, a city of about 500,000 people, has many temples and tombs built by pharaohs. It is a key site for Egypt’s tourist industry, which has been battered by political instability and jihadi violence since the 2011 revolution that toppled the longtime dictator Hosni Mubarak.

From My Modern Met:
By Christine Mitchell

                                                                 

Scattered throughout modern Egypt are many ancient temples which are famous for their splendor and historical significance. The perfect example of one of these breathtaking displays of luxury is the Temple of Hathor. 

Built around 2250 BC, the artwork that runs throughout the building is remarkably well kept, despite being thousands and thousands of years old. As the main temple within the significant Dendera Temple complex, it is known for being one of the best-preserved sites in all of Egypt.

Facing the Nile, the sanctuary layout is classical Egyptian, containing stunning examples of Ptolemaic Egyptian artwork including depictions of Cleopatra and her son, fathered by Julius Caesar. The temple itself was built to worship the Ancient Egyptian goddess Hathor, who personified feminine love, healing, and motherhood. Imposing columns have been carved to bear the face of the goddess, complete with the cow horns she is typically shown to bear.

Though the entire temple is magnificent, it is the ceiling that remains the true masterpiece. Recently, workers carefully removed hundreds of years of black soot which accumulated as a centuries-old Arab village established camp within the temple. 

Through the restoration, a spectacular and vibrant painting overhead was slowly revealed. Decorated with a complex astrological chart of the heavens and zodiac signs, the ancient temple ceiling now offers a highly detailed setting to study or just a lovely scene to visit and be swept away by the antiquated opulence.
For a 360 degree view go here.



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