Natural History Museum of Milan

[The Amateur Paleontologist]

In June 2016, during a trip to Italy, I went for a morning to the Natural History Museum of Milan to check out the fossils they had. I was slightly disappointed when I learned that the Scipionyx samniticus holotype specimen was no longer housed over there, but the museum did on the other hand have some rather neat fossils. Here they are

 

 

2 labyrinthodont skulls from the Permian of Madagascar (Sakamena Formation?), preserved as part and counterpart:

 

1) Parotosuchus madagascariensis

2) Indeterminate capitosaurid

3) Resin casts of the skulls

 

 

Pterosaur phalange from the Triassic of Italy

 

 

 

Dermal "armour" of a Bothriolepis canadensis from the Upper Devonian of Canada

 

 

 

Edestus heinrichi (eugeneodontid chondrichthyan similar to Helicoprion) tooth from the Carboniferous of the USA (they didn't give more specific location details)

 

 

 

Astreptoscolex anasillosus (polychaete worm) from the Carboniferous of Mazon Creek, USA

 

 

 

Well preserved skull of Askeptosaurus italicus from the Triassic Besano Formation (Besano, Italy)

 

 

 

Hope you liked it! Don't worry guys, I'll post more from this museum in the next few days.

 

[Heteromorph]

Cool place! That Triassic dinosaur is astonishing.

[Tidgy's Dad]

Very nice photos, looks most interesting. 

Thanks for sharing and look forward to the next batch of pics! 

[Miocene_Mason]

Thanks for taking us on this virtual tour

[The Amateur Paleontologist]

The next pics will be (I hope) as interesting as these ones 

[The Amateur Paleontologist]

The next instalment in my gallery of fossils on display at the Natural History Museum of Milan - enjoy!

 

Well preserved skeleton of Serpianosaurus mirigiolensis from the Triassic Besano Formation (Besano, Italy)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Soft tissue preservation of a squid from the Mid Jurassic of Voulte-sur-Rhône (France)

 

 

 

 

Two heteromorph ammonites from the Late Cretaceous Yezo Group of Hokkaidō, Japan (left: Scalarites; right: Muramatoceras)

 

 

 

 

Decapod crustacean Hoploparia from the Cretaceous of England (no further specifications are provided)

 

 

 

 

Partial skeleton of another Besano Fm. reptile, Oidoporosaurus teruzzii (note the rather neat 3D preservation of the bones)

 

 

 

 

I guess that's about it for the fossils from the Natural History Museum of Milan. Hope you liked it  

[Bone guy]

That squid is astonishing. Thanks for sharing!

[getslideways]

Thank you for sharing your trip with us! Those Triassic pieces are really awesome

[The Amateur Paleontologist]

@Bone guy @getslideways My pleasure   Glad you guys liked it!

[Tidgy's Dad]

Thanks for sharing! 

I also liked the squid best. 

Beautiful.

[Wrangellian]

On 5/3/2018 at 2:09 PM, The Amateur Paleontologist said:

...

Dermal "armour" of a Bothriolepis canadensis from the Upper Devonian of Canada

 

 

Edestus heinrichi (eugeneodontid chondrichthyan similar to Helicoprion) tooth from the Carboniferous of the USA (they didn't give more specific location details)

 

You're not kidding! USA and Canada are pretty big locations. They couldn't even narrow the Canada down to Quebec? I believe that piece is from Miguasha.

Thanks for the tour.

[The Amateur Paleontologist]

Trust me @Wrangellian, I'm not kidding - "USA" and "Canada" were indeed the only details given about where the fossils were from. I was also rather surprised when I saw it on the labels. Hope you liked the fossils anyway. 

[Wrangellian]

That's pretty lazy/sloppy for a museum!  It makes it seem like they don't care about details, because they should know them or be able to figure them out...

The fossils are wonderful.

[ynot]

Small but sweet!

Thanks for the show.

[Masp]

Very nice pics! Did they say where the actual Sciopionyx specimen is now? 

[The Amateur Paleontologist]

@Masp Thanks for your kind words  The holotype specimen is held at the Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici di Salerno, Avellino, Benevento e Caserta (the Archeological Superintendence of Salerno).

[Masp]

31 minutes ago, The Amateur Paleontologist said:

@Masp Thanks for your kind words  The holotype specimen is held at the Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici di Salerno, Avellino, Benevento e Caserta (the Archeological Superintendence of Salerno).

Very cool, thank you!  I’m usually am in that area once a summer, so I’ll have to check that out!!

[The Amateur Paleontologist]

12 minutes ago, Masp said:

Very cool, thank you!  I’m usually am in that area once a summer, so I’ll have to check that out!!

That's so cool! Last time, I only had time to go to Venice and Milan - and I don't know when I'll go next to Italy - but you have the possibility to go there every summer! That's really neat!

[Masp]

57 minutes ago, The Amateur Paleontologist said:

That's so cool! Last time, I only had time to go to Venice and Milan - and I don't know when I'll go next to Italy - but you have the possibility to go there every summer! That's really neat!

  I totally get it...kind of hard to do everything because you need like, another week just to see  a bit of the south lol. Venice and Milan are very cool too. 

[michele 1937]

IF you come to Italy, let me know.
I live near Milan.
I would be happy.
Michele

[The Amateur Paleontologist]

Sure, that'd be nice  I'll let you know when I'll be in Italy next time (hopefully this time with a little detour to Salerno to see Scipionyx)