indominus rex Posted August 9, 2018 Share Posted August 9, 2018 Hello, I recently found a guy who has offered to sell me this complete Ichthyosaurus and a Keichousaurus and I was wondering if you guys see any Red Flags. It’s from China but he didn’t specify. I don’t see anything too obvious but I wanted some of your guys’s thoughts. Regards, indominus rex Life started in the ocean. And so did my interest in fossils. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indominus rex Posted August 9, 2018 Author Share Posted August 9, 2018 Also here is the Keichousaurus. Life started in the ocean. And so did my interest in fossils. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrozenFlame Posted August 9, 2018 Share Posted August 9, 2018 (edited) I'm no expert but for the Ichthyosaurus skull looks painted, the colour is pretty different to the rest of the body. Some of the ribs on the left side look painted too, they're a touch darker than the ribs on the right side. The matrix has a lot of cracks as well, so to me, it feels more real in the sense it isn't perfect, but others are more qualified to judge than I. As for the Keichousaurus, probably need a few more pictures close up. Edited August 9, 2018 by FrozenFlame Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazyhen Posted August 9, 2018 Share Posted August 9, 2018 It seems some parts of the ichthyosaurus in particular the skull and flippers are painted/sculptured, but this is very "normal" for ichthyosaurus from China, specimens are usually having certain degree of painting and sculpture. The Keichosaurus is genuine, not prepped. Both specimens are likely from Luoping, Guizhou of China. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indominus rex Posted August 9, 2018 Author Share Posted August 9, 2018 A close up of the head. Life started in the ocean. And so did my interest in fossils. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indominus rex Posted August 9, 2018 Author Share Posted August 9, 2018 Could you highlight/ circle the parts that may have been sculpted or painted? And is this specimen worth getting, as like a display piece? Life started in the ocean. And so did my interest in fossils. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seguidora-de-Isis Posted August 9, 2018 Share Posted August 9, 2018 1 hour ago, indominus rex said: Could you highlight/ circle the parts that may have been sculpted or painted? And is this specimen worth getting, as like a display piece? In my opinion there is nothing in this skull that is true. Not even the teeth are true. To best illustrate what I am talking about, here is the photo of a genuine Ichthyosaurus skull from China that I would expect to be able to consider as being true: If you can live with it, that the skeleton is good, but the skull is a mere artistic reconstitution, so yes, it can be an excellent purchase. 5 Is It real, or it's not real, that's the question! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indominus rex Posted August 9, 2018 Author Share Posted August 9, 2018 1 minute ago, Seguidora-de-Isis said: In my opinion there is nothing in this skull that is true. Not even the teeth are true. To best illustrate what I am talking about, here is the photo of a genuine Ichthyosaurus skull from China that I would expect to be able to consider as being true: If you can live with it, that the skeleton is good, but the skull is a mere artistic reconstitution, so yes, it can be an excellent purchase. Aw I was hoping it was real, he does have other ones. Soon I'll post more pictures. 1 Life started in the ocean. And so did my interest in fossils. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indominus rex Posted August 9, 2018 Author Share Posted August 9, 2018 This one seems a lot more suspicious to me, what do you guys think? Life started in the ocean. And so did my interest in fossils. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazyhen Posted August 9, 2018 Share Posted August 9, 2018 It is very difficult to tell from photos if the skull is real or painted/crafted. But I agree with our friend @Seguidora-de-Isis that the skull is largely painted/crafted. Even the very nice specimen shown below has some crafting. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indominus rex Posted August 9, 2018 Author Share Posted August 9, 2018 Well, judging by the fact that it’s a 130cm Ichthyosaurus and an unprepared Keichousaurus, even if it was partially faked/painted, I think it’s not bad especially judging by the price. But what about the second Ichthyosaurus? Life started in the ocean. And so did my interest in fossils. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seguidora-de-Isis Posted August 9, 2018 Share Posted August 9, 2018 6 minutes ago, indominus rex said: Well, judging by the fact that it’s a 130cm Ichthyosaurus and an unprepared Keichousaurus, even if it was partially faked/painted, I think it’s not bad especially judging by the price. But what about the second Ichthyosaurus? Very difficult to judge only by these two photos. It is necessary close up photos of the bones so I could give a more accurate opinion. But only for this photo, I can say that the skull seems to be real, but the whole beak seems to have been carved. And some body parts too. 3 Is It real, or it's not real, that's the question! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seguidora-de-Isis Posted August 9, 2018 Share Posted August 9, 2018 10 minutes ago, Crazyhen said: It is very difficult to tell from photos if the skull is real or painted/crafted. But I agree with our friend @Seguidora-de-Isis that the skull is largely painted/crafted. Even the very nice specimen shown below has some crafting. Congratulations to the preparer! Here the technique is completely more expensive and sophisticated, since there are no sculpted parts, but rather real specimen molds to complete the missing parts! Fantastic and wonderful! 1 Is It real, or it's not real, that's the question! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indominus rex Posted August 9, 2018 Author Share Posted August 9, 2018 6 minutes ago, Seguidora-de-Isis said: Very difficult to judge only by these two photos. It is necessary close up photos of the bones so I could give a more accurate opinion. But only for this photo, I can say that the skull seems to be real, but the whole beak seems to have been carved. And some body parts too. So which one would you trust more out of the 2? Which one looks better and more genuine? Life started in the ocean. And so did my interest in fossils. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazyhen Posted August 9, 2018 Share Posted August 9, 2018 4 minutes ago, Seguidora-de-Isis said: Congratulations to the preparer! Here the technique is completely more expensive and sophisticated, since there are no sculpted parts, but rather real specimen molds to complete the missing parts! Fantastic and wonderful! This one is relatively much nicer but it’s very expensive. Couldn’t afford to buy it.... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazyhen Posted August 9, 2018 Share Posted August 9, 2018 1 minute ago, indominus rex said: So which one would you trust more out of the 2? Which one looks better and more genuine? The second one in my view is largely crafted. If you really like to choose either one, I would go for the first one. But if you only want either the ichthyosaur or Keichousaurus, the Keichousaurus is much better, it’s genuine and not prepped. By the way, are the specimens in US already? It is illegal to export the fossils out of China, and so if they are to be sent from China, it’s risky. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indominus rex Posted August 9, 2018 Author Share Posted August 9, 2018 1 minute ago, Crazyhen said: The second one in my view is largely crafted. If you really like to choose either one, I would go for the first one. But if you only want either the ichthyosaur or Keichousaurus, the Keichousaurus is much better, it’s genuine and not prepped. By the way, are the specimens in US already? It is illegal to export the fossils out of China, and so if they are to be sent from China, it’s risky. Oh, well I do believe he is in China. The thing is that he is including the Keichousaurus with the Ichthyosaurus, so it was more of a bonus. 1 Life started in the ocean. And so did my interest in fossils. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazyhen Posted August 9, 2018 Share Posted August 9, 2018 In any case, it is very difficult to get a good and genuine specimen of ichthyosaur from China. Most of the specimens have more or less some painted or crafted parts, it’s the standard practice in the source locality to repair the fossils with paint or crafted parts. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seguidora-de-Isis Posted August 9, 2018 Share Posted August 9, 2018 8 minutes ago, indominus rex said: So which one would you trust more out of the 2? Which one looks better and more genuine? If it were for my collection, I would buy the number 1 that the way it is, it seems to be much better than the 2. If I bought the 1, I would completely shave the head, and with mold of solicone would copy the head of some good german or england replica and using the powder on the back side of the matrix itself, and proper paint, I would put the skull myself. But if you do not know preparation techniques, the way it is, the 1 is very good! 2 Is It real, or it's not real, that's the question! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indominus rex Posted August 9, 2018 Author Share Posted August 9, 2018 While I’m at it, what do you guys think about this? It’s way out of my budget and I am not planning on buying it, just wanna see what you guys think. Life started in the ocean. And so did my interest in fossils. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazyhen Posted August 9, 2018 Share Posted August 9, 2018 1 minute ago, indominus rex said: Oh, well I do believe he is in China. The thing is that he is including the Keichousaurus with the Ichthyosaurus, so it was more of a bonus. You need to be very careful then, especially with payment. And it’s highly likely that the fossil would break apart during transportation. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indominus rex Posted August 9, 2018 Author Share Posted August 9, 2018 Just now, Seguidora-de-Isis said: If it were for my collection, I would buy the number 1 that the way it is, it seems to be much better than the 2. If I bought the 1, I would completely shave the head, and with mold of solicone would copy the head of some good german or england replica and using the powder on the back side of the matrix itself, and proper paint, I would put the skull myself. But if you do not know preparation techniques, the way it is, the 1 is very good! I do agree with what you say and it sounds like a great idea, but I’d rather find someone who would do it. But in my opinion it’s a great price for a mostly authentic Ichthyosaurus. Thanks for your guys help 1 Life started in the ocean. And so did my interest in fossils. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indominus rex Posted August 9, 2018 Author Share Posted August 9, 2018 2 minutes ago, Crazyhen said: You need to be very careful then, especially with payment. And it’s highly likely that the fossil would break apart during transportation. He said he was going to ship it with a crate, a wooden crate. 1 Life started in the ocean. And so did my interest in fossils. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazyhen Posted August 9, 2018 Share Posted August 9, 2018 2 minutes ago, indominus rex said: While I’m at it, what do you guys think about this? It’s way out of my budget and I am not planning on buying it, just wanna see what you guys think. Hard to tell with a photo of such low resolution but such specimens are not too uncommon from Jehol. I bet it’s very expensive! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazyhen Posted August 9, 2018 Share Posted August 9, 2018 Just now, indominus rex said: He said he was going to ship it with a crate, a wooden crate. Pay by PayPal ? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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