Perhaps everyone has at least once seen some documentary in which archaeologists carefully cleaned dust and dirt from the remains of a long-dead creature with a small brush. This is how archaeologists work in real life, because archaeological rarities require careful handling. But sometimes researchers find remains that are stunningly well preserved, despite the past millennia. In our review, there is an archaeological "top ten" that surprised and delighted scientists.
1. Baby Mammoth Yuka
Woolly Mammoth Hatchling
Although researchers have found several samples of well-preserved mammoths in the past, Yuka is certainly a unique specimen. The remains of this 1.8-meter baby woolly mammoth were accidentally discovered in August 2010 in Yakutia. The animal was between six and nine years old when it died, and the baby is estimated to be around 39,000 years old.
The researchers say that Yuka was most likely killed by people, since smooth cuts were found on his carcass, and some of the meat was removed. This makes Yuka the first mammoth to show evidence of human interaction. The animal also has the best-preserved mammoth brain ever discovered by modern scientists.
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2. Trilobites
Early Cambrian marine arthropod
Don't let their looks fool you, trilobites were actually very effective predators at the time. These marine arthropods lived 521 million years ago, at the beginning of the Cambrian period of the Earth. Trilobite fossils are found on all continents of the Earth, and some of the best-preserved specimens still have soft body parts such as gills and antennae.
They became extinct about 250 million years ago during the Permian mass extinction. Because trilobites have lived for over 300 million years and over 20,000 different species have existed, they are considered the most successful animal of all time.
3. Dinosaurs that look like rhinos
Hasmosaurus Belli Cub
The well-preserved remains of a baby Hasmosaurus Belli (the adorable cousin of Triceratops) were discovered in Alberta, Canada in 2015. In 2016, scientists stated that the baby dinosaur is 75 million years old and its skeleton has been preserved in stunningly perfect condition, despite this age, and as a whole, and not in parts.
4. Woolly rhino
The remains of a woolly rhino
The 10,000-year-old remains of a woolly rhinoceros have been found on a frozen Siberian river in Yakutia. The rhinoceros was nicknamed Sasha by the name of the hunter who found him. Sasha was only a three to four year old "teenager" at the time of his death and is, in fact, the only full woolly rhino cub ever found. Although researchers have found well-preserved adults of this species, the remains of young rhinos have not yet been found.
Sasha was donated to the Yakut Academy of Sciences for study. Although woolly rhinos lived at the same time as woolly mammoths and even shared the same habitat, the two are not related. The woolly rhinoceros is a distant relative of modern rhinos, while the mammoth is a relative of modern Asian elephants.
5. Cave lion cubs
Cave lion cubs Dina and Uyan
In Yakutia, animal mummies are often found, because this region is famous for its permafrost. A pair of 10,000-year-old cave lion cubs have also been found in the region in a Siberian glacier. The two cubs, named Dina and Wuyan, were barely a week old when they died. Experts believe that their lair was covered by a landslide, and the lack of air led to the fact that the bodies were so well preserved.
6. Ancient pregnant mare
Eurohippus messelensis
In 2000, the remains of the horse's distant ancestor, Eurohippus messelensis, were discovered in archaeological excavations near the German Darmstadt. Moreover, this ancient horse was at a late stage of pregnancy, when it died about 48 million years ago, and the fetus inside it is very well preserved. The researchers used high-resolution X-ray microanalysis and scanning electron microscopes to find out everything they could about the fetus.
They found that the mare's placenta, internal organs, and even the contents of her stomach were still intact. It is the earliest and best preserved fossil specimen of its kind today. The ancient horse was the size of a modern fox and had four toes on each of its four legs.
7. Bison mummy
Bison priscus
The mummified remains of Bison priscus, an ancient relative of the modern bison, have been found in the Siberian lowland between the Yana and Indigirka rivers. The frozen climate of Northern Siberia protected the bison from decay, so its brain and internal organs were perfectly preserved even for 10,000 years.
Olga Potapova, curator of collections at the Museum of Mammoth Locations in Hot Springs, South Dakota, helped to study the ancient remains. She stated in an interview with Live Science magazine that it is rare to find whole specimens in Siberia and North America. Usually these remains are partially eaten or destroyed.
8. Dog Tumat
Ancient dog Tumat
Usually, when someone says "place" to a dog, they are not suggesting that the animal can remain in place for 12,000 years. This specimen was found on the banks of the Siberian river Silyakh by brothers Yuri and Igor Gorokhov, who were looking for mammoth tusks. The ancient dog is believed to be around 12,400 years old.
Experts examined the body of a dog named Tumat for four years. However, an autopsy was carried out only in 2015 and it turned out that the internal organs of the animal were simply perfectly preserved.
9. Dunkleosti
Prehistoric fish
Dunkleosteus is the most terrible prehistoric fish, the existence of which until recently no one knew. As early as 380 million years ago, these heavily armored fish were widespread in shallow seas around the world. As a rule, they were 9 meters long and weighed up to four tons, that is, they were the largest vertebrates at that time.
Today, their remains are distributed throughout the Earth. The head of the skeleton of a dunkleosteus usually looks like that of a leatherback turtle, since it does not have teeth, but plates like a pair of blades.
10. Moa foot
Dominant herbivores of New Zealand
Moa were wingless birds native to New Zealand. They were completely covered with feathers, except for the beak and paws. Moa were also the largest birds at the time of their existence (they first appeared about 15.8 million years ago). They were New Zealand's dominant herbivores and flourished until the arrival of the Polynesians in the 13th century. Due to over-hunting, moa disappeared about 500 years ago, around 1500.
During an expedition to the cave system of the Owen Mountains in New Zealand, archaeologists discovered a mummified moa claw, which is practically intact: even the muscles and skin were preserved. Archaeologists sent the claw for analysis and were shocked to find that it was 3300 years old.