Paleo Ink Journal

Well, I finally made it to the spawning ground of paleontology. One of the main ones at least. It was absolutely mesmerising to see all the fossils that have by now acquired legendary status. I took only a few photos, made only a few sketches, because I was busy being spellbound at one of the most extraordinary windows into the Earth's past.

Rajasaurus narmadensis | Abelisaurid (Late Cretaceous period)

Named in 2003 as the 'king lizard' of India, Rajasaurus narmadensis is the most well known dinosaur amongst the sparse fossil record of India. It exhibits the characteristic features of the abelisaurid group of the carnivorous theropod dinosaurs, including a high, boxy skull, ridiculously small arms and in this case, a head crest that can be seen on its most likely evolutionary cousin from Madagascar, the Majungasaurus.

Isisaurus colberti | Titanosaur (Late Cretaceous period)

Neither an Egyptian goddess nor a terrorist outfit nor an intelligence bureau were the source of this creature's name. It was, instead, named after the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI), which was the office of the 2 scientists who named this unique looking sauropod. It was discovered in 1984 in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and is among the more complete titanosaur skeletons of the world. Recognisably, it has a relatively short neck for its height, much longer forelimbs than hind limbs and a skull that bears some resemblance to the diplodocid lineage of sauropod dinosaurs.