JURASSIC TALK mit Nils Knötschke

In his lecture titled "A Fox Den as a Window into Prehistory: The Discovery and Preparation of the World's Most Complete Dinotherium Skeletons," renowned taxidermist Nils Knötschke discusses a remarkable find from Bavaria. Attendance at the Jurassic Talk is free.

A fox den as a window into prehistory: The discovery and preparation of the world’s most complete Dinotherium skeletons

Three years ago, “Big Alex” and “Little Consti” made headlines—two massive Dinotheria, or ancient elephants, named after their discoverers, who were 9 and 10 years old at the time. Sometimes a major scientific discovery begins quite unremarkably. In this case, with a fox den in Bavaria—and the curiosity of children who took a closer look. What they found there was no ordinary bone, but the first clue to an extraordinary discovery.

In this lecture, discover how a chance find turned out to be the discovery of the world’s most complete Dinotherium skeletons and how the bones of these mighty land mammals were excavated and prepared!

Nils Knötschke— Palaeonils —is a well-known fossil preparator who has specialized in the excavation and preparation of dinosaur fossils for over 20 years. Among other things, he was involved in the recovery, preparation, and exhibition of Europasaurus fossils in northern Germany; he is co-director of the excavations conducted by the Aathal Dinosaur Museum (Switzerland) in Wyoming and leads the museum’s fossil preparation team. As a consultant and planner, he has contributed to numerous international exhibition projects and helped bring successful exhibitions to life. In his talk, he will discuss a very special discovery in Bavaria and the complex process of preparing the fossil finds, which are now on display in a museum.

Attendance at the lecture is free; voluntary donations are welcome. To help us plan, please register: online via this link or by phone at ++49 6525 9339344.

The final lecture in this year’s “Jurassic Talks” series will take place on October 23, 2026:

Dr. Sebastian Voigt: The Remigiusberg near Kusel—Germany’s Oldest Dinosaur

For more information on the “Jurassic Talks,” visit www.dinopark-teufelsschlucht.de