Dinosaurs & Prehistory - Dinosaurs - Spinosaurus - Cretaceous - Fossils
What happened to the original Spinosaurus fossils during World War II?
Correct!
The first scientifically described fossils of Spinosaurus aegyptiacus were discovered in Egypt in 1912 and described by German paleontologist Ernst Stromer von Reichenbach in 1915. The material made its way to Munich and formed the original type specimen of the species. But on the 24th/25th. In April 1944, the Munich collection was destroyed during a bombing raid during World War II. The original Spinosaurus bones were also lost. The Natural History Museum specifically lists the Spinosaurus holotype as one of the type specimens destroyed in World War II. This was particularly problematic for research because Spinosaurus was already only known from incomplete material. For decades, scientists had to rely on Stromer's descriptions, drawings and later finds to reconstruct the animal. New Spinosaurus fossils have since changed our view of the dinosaur several times.
The original type specimen of Spinosaurus was destroyed in a bombing raid on Munich in 1944. Therefore, descriptions, drawings and later finds were particularly important for further research.
