Everything is fake and gay

But let's do it
I just open Google Chrome search the work "Archaeologists" and select the first of the list. What can I say? They never disappoint me
Archaeologists stunned by truth behind 280-million-year-old fossil
Analysis has revealed that the animal’s dark body outline – initially thought to be soft tissues – is just paint
A
280-million-year-old reptile fossil that
puzzled researchers for decades is a fake, archaeologists have said.
Analysis of the creature, dubbed
Tridentinosaurus antiquus, has revealed the material
that was thought to be well-preserved,
ancient soft tissue is,
in fact, just black paint.
The
lizard-like animal, about
20cm (8in) long, was discovered in the Italian Alps in 1931 and was
believed to be an important finding that could help
shed light on how
reptiles evolved.
With its body outline
appearing dark on the surrounding rock, the reptile’s
remarkable preservation was previously
attributed to a
fossilisation process known as carbonisation, which is
relatively common among plant specimens
but rare among animals.
This led the Tridentinosaurus to be classified as
a member of the reptile group
known as Protorosauria and its purported fossilised skin, although
never studied in detail, gained prominence in news articles and books. However, the
strange features of the fossil left
many palaeontologists wondering where the reptile belonged and
how did it come to be so well-preserved.
A team of researchers in Ireland and Italy analysed the fossil using
UV photography, which
revealed a coating material on the specimen.
The researchers said that coating fossils with
varnishes or lacquers was
quite common in the past as a way to preserve the specimen.
So
the team was hoping that beneath the coating layer, original soft tissues would
be present and would be in
good condition.
However, a
microscopic analysis then revealed the texture and composition of the material
did not match that of
genuine soft tissue fossils.
The researchers said their findings revealed the body outline of the Tridentinosaurus was
artificially created with black paint, coated on the
carved lizard-shaped rock surface.
Based on their findings,
published in the journal Palaeontology,
the researchers are
urging caution about the fossil and how it is used in
future research.
Professor Evelyn Kustatscher,
a palaeobotanist at the Natural Science Museum of South Tyrol in Italy, said: “The
peculiar preservation of Tridentinosaurus
had puzzled experts for decades.
“Now, it all
makes sense.
“What was described as carbonised skin is
just paint.”
Dr Valentina Rossi, of
University College Cork’s School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences in Ireland,
added: “Fossil soft tissues are rare, but when found in a fossil they can reveal
important biological information, for instance, the external colouration, internal anatomy and physiology.
“The
answer to all our questions was right in front of us, we
had to study this fossil specimen
in detail to reveal its
secrets – even those that perhaps
we did not want to know.”
However,
the researchers said that despite the setback, the fossil
is not a complete forgery.
The bones of the hindlimbs and the femurs
appear to be genuine but poorly preserved, they said.