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Is it a bird or a dinosaur? The Mona Lisa of fossils at the Teylers Museum in Netherlands secretly visits the UK's ... - EurekAlert


<p>When a precious 150-million-year-old Ostromia crassipes fossil - formerly known as a specimen of Archaeopteryx&nbsp; - recently arrived at Diamond Light Source in a high security operation, it naturally caused a great deal of excitement. The rare fossil, which is usually housed at the renowned Teylers Museum in the Netherlands, was brought to the UK&#39;s national synchrotron secretly so scientists could discover more about its features, including the colour of its feathers. The specimen was studied on the I18 beamline, using a microfocus X-ray available at the UK&rsquo;s leading science facility. This &lsquo;Ostromia&rsquo; fossil shows the knee region, part of the wing, claws, ribs, lower stomach bones, and feather imprints.&nbsp; These were examined at Diamond in more detail than ever before. This is the first time this specific fossil has been studied in such a way.&nbsp; The Archaeopteryx is called the &lsquo;first true bird&rsquo; and is about the same size as a magpie at around 20 inches from head to tail.</p> <p>The new research undertaken will be the subject of a forthcoming paper and is a collaboration between the University of Utrecht, Teylers Museum and Diamond.</p>

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