In the early 19th century, amateur naturalists and scientists became interested in the fossilized remains of a previously unknown group of creatures that became extinct more than 65 million years ago. One of the pioneers in their study was the Englishman Gideon Mantell.
early years
Gideon Algernon Mantell was born on February 3, 1790 in Lewis, in the English county of Sussex. He was the fifth child in the family of a poor shoe maker.
He successfully graduated from medical school, qualified as a doctor and began to practice in his home district as an obstetrician. Mantell later joined the Royal College of Surgeons.
Since childhood, Mantell was fond of geology and spent most of his free time wandering around the area, collecting and studying samples of unusual rocks. His home county of Sussex is famous for its sedimentary outcrops to this day. At that time, the fossilized remains of creatures were preserved in them. They presumably died in or near water in the same area. Their bodies were carried downstream and settled as lacustrine sediments.
Mantell's wife, Mary Ann, shared his enthusiasm. In 1818, she was strolling through the fields at Cacfield, north of Lewis, and found unusual fossilized teeth in a pile of rubble. Gideon Mantell became interested in finding his wife and later excavated at that place.
The scientist discovered many interesting fossils there, including perfectly preserved teeth. He originally counted them as iguana lizard teeth. However, later it was proved that they belonged to a creature of a previously unknown prehistoric species, which was named iguanodon (from the Greek words meaning iguana tooth).
Contribution to science
Mantell's findings and research challenged the then age and history of the Earth, and contributed to the modern understanding of prehistoric life forms. He was the first to realize that the giant-sized bones he found did not belong to mythical giants, but to ancient animals. For a long time, his conclusions did not find understanding among paleontologists, but the Englishman continued to insist on his own.
Gideon Mantell discovered Hylaeosaurus, Pelorosaurus and Regnosaurus - three genera of prehistoric lizards that were later named dinosaurs by eminent paleontologist Richard Owen (which means "terrible lizards"). Mantell also described the reptile Telerpeton Elginense, which lived during the Triassic period, approximately between 206 and 248 million years ago.
He proved that the fossils discovered are the remains of Cretaceous aquatic creatures that lived between 66 and 145 million years ago. They lived in both fresh and salt water.
As one of the founding fathers of paleontology, Mantell set out his findings in two major works: Medals of Creation and South Downs Fossils, or Illustrated Geology of Sussex. It is noteworthy that during his lifetime he did not know glory. Richard Owen bathed in its rays, who actively used his findings. And Mantell went down in the history of science as "the forgotten discoverer of dinosaurs." One of the ammonites (Ammonites mantelli), found in the Cretaceous rocks of southern England, is named after him.
