Diplomats destroy Egypt whale fossil

AFP via Yahoo ^ | 2007 Aug 26 | AFP

[Brujo]

European diplomats in four-wheel drive cars have caused millions of dollars worth of damage to a fossilised whale lying for millions of years in the Egyptian desert, a security source said on Sunday.

"Whale Valley officials have informed the authorities that people from two diplomatic corps vehicles destroyed the fossil," the source told AFP after the destruction was discovered around 150 kilometres (95 miles) south of Cairo.

Two cars drove into the protected area on Friday and then refused to stop when asked to do so by wardens who nevertheless got the vehicles' registration numbers which the source said were from "a European country."

"The damage is more than 10 million dollars," the source said.

The site, known as Wadi Hitan (Whale Valley), was home to whales around 40 million years ago when the area was ocean. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site and home to hundreds of of whale fossils.

[Eepsy]

"I'm worth what?!?!!"

[chit*chat]

Is there really that much of a market for fossilized whale?

That is hardly the point! These jerks are untouchable by virtue of their diplomatic status and rather than being good global citizens (/sarcasm) by example they are obnoxious and callous, breaking the law without a thought or care when it suits them.

Why society puts up with this and allows diplomatic immunity is disturbingly unreasonable.

[Fred Nerks]

According to James Trifil, some 243 fossilized whale skeletons and loose bones were discovered in a large valley 150 miles southwest of Cairo (100 miles inland from the Mediterranean Sea and more than 200 miles from the Red Sea). These skeletons are of Zeuglodon whales, like those found all over the southeastern United States. The Egyptian whale bones were scattered among the sand dunes; when the wind exposed them, the paleontologists rapidly dug out as much of the fossilized whale as possible because windborne sand erodes exposed bones.7

It is generally accepted that the Sahara Desert was created only after the Ice Age ended and the climate became arid. Therefore, whales had to have embedded themselves into the desert sand after the Ice Age ended and sand formed to cover them. The whales must have been left there recently. If Zeuglodons were lying on or near the surface for about 40 million years, as some paleontologists submit, their bones would have eroded away. LINK

SOURCE

Egypt may not be the first place you'd look for whales, but once upon a time the Wadi Hitan desert was underwater and teeming with the sea giants.

[Fred Nerks]

whale rib, Omani Desert, 100 klm from ocean.

[Docbarleypop]

I remove the book “The Lost Dinosaurs of Egypt” from the anthropology section of nearly every book store i visit and toss it into science, i suppose i am a bit sensitive being an anthro major but i hate it when people assume archeaologists dig up dinasaurs.

[metmom]

Imagine that. The area was covered with water once.

[SunkenCiv]

Mammals told me there’d be days like this.

[editor-surveyor]

Who do you think you are, Lazmataz?

[SunkenCiv]

I blow whole topics apart with puns. ;’)

[MarkL]

The most expensive fossil ever sold was an excellent Tyrannosaurus rex specimen from South Dakota, the famous one known as "Sue". She sold for $8.4 million.

And IIRC, there were HUGH court battles over that as well...

Mark

[Lucius Cornelius Sulla]

Therefore, whales had to have embedded themselves into the desert sand after the Ice Age ended and sand formed to cover them.

'the Zeuglodon, an aquatic animal that apparently lived from 37 to 53 million years ago'.
I am afraid that the Ice Age is a little more recent than 37 to 53 million years ago.