This exhibition on view through Mar 1 2012 marks the 150th anniversary of the discovery of Archaeopteryx, the famous feathered fossil known as the ‘missing-link’ between dinosaurs and birds.
About the size of a magpie, Archaeopteryx was a primitive bird with feathers but its fossilised skeleton looks more like that of a small dinosaur.
It was first described 150 years ago by the German palaeontologist Hermann von Meyer (1801-1869). Since then Archaeopteryx has been the focus of controversy surrounding the origin of birds and their links with dinosaurs.
This particular specimen was found in 1990 in Daiting, Germany by a private collector. Its existence was only revealed in 1996 and a cast was released, but with no further news of its whereabouts made public, it was nicknamed “The Phantom”.
It was ‘rediscovered’ in 2009 and purchased by a professional palaeontologist. This is the first time the specimen has been shown to the public outside Germany. – www.museumwales.ac.uk