Since the early 19th century, artists have depicted colorful – if sometimes fictional – animals (especially dinosaurs) and prehistoric environments, mingling science with unbridled fantasy as more and more fossils got uncovered and studied by the archeologists of that time.
It is pretty clear, though, that by only looking at a cluster of fossils such as bones, not much can be said about the appearance of the said animal that existed a long time ago. For example, the prehistoric reptiles could share similar bone structures thus revealing their true appearance was quite a hard task at the time.
However, nowadays, with the help of computers, artists and archeologists alike can get an idea about what these majestic creatures looked like millions of years ago.
A paleoartist known as "Paleorex" on their Instagram shows how various prehistoric animals might’ve looked like millions of years ago by making 3D renders of them.
More info: Instagram
#1 Velociraptor
Velociraptor is one of the most iconic dinosaurs of all. It was a ferocious hunter that likely relied on its deadly sickle claws to pierce the vital areas of its victim’s body, much like today’s eagles.
Velociraptors have been misunderstood ever since they were featured in Jurassic Park as giant scaly dinosaurs. In reality, Velociraptor shared many traits found in modern-day birds, most notably, feathers. Through art, this long-extinct and fascinating animal is brought back to life!
Velociraptors have been misunderstood ever since they were featured in Jurassic Park as giant scaly dinosaurs. In reality, Velociraptor shared many traits found in modern-day birds, most notably, feathers. Through art, this long-extinct and fascinating animal is brought back to life!
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165points
The Encylopedia describes paleoart as any original artistic work that attempts to depict prehistoric life according to scientific evidence. Works of paleoart may be representations of fossil remains or imagined depictions of the living creatures and their ecosystems. While paleoart is typically defined as being scientifically informed, it is often the basis of depictions of prehistoric animals in popular culture, which in turn influences public perception of and fuels interest in these animals.
#2 Smilodon
Up until about 10,000 years ago, the saber-toothed cat Smilodon was a ferocious predator that dominated the primeval landscape of the Americas. Smilodon means "knife-tooth", a perfectly fitting name given its enormous fangs, which measured up to 28 centimeters in length. This 250-kilogram feline was an apex predator and primarily hunted the large mammals it shared the land with, such as bison and camels.
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156points
#3 Dorygnathus
Dorygnathus was a small pterosaur that lived in Europe during the Early Jurassic period approximately 180 million years ago when shallow seas flooded much of the continent. This flying reptile had a short wingspan of about 1.5 meters. The most striking feature of Dorygnathus is its incredible teeth, which were very long and sharp, ideal for catching small aquatic prey like prehistoric fish and squids.
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147points
In case you didn't know, through paleoart, most of the fossils found are "revived." A single drawing or sculpture can define how the public will visualize a whole category of extinct species. So paleoartists strive to keep their work as accurate as possible—a task that gets harder when the experts disagree and when more data is found and proved inaccurate.
#4 Barbourofelis
Barbourofelis was one of the largest "false saber-tooth cats", which were carnivorous mammals that, due to convergent evolution, evolved to be very similar in appearance to cats, even though they were quite distantly related. Barbourofelis was up to 1.8 meters long and was a powerfully built predator, with a skeletal structure that is indicative of a strongly developed musculature. This hints Barbourofelis was a fierce predator, which likely hunted large prey in North America during the Pliocene.
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136points
#5 Stegoceras
Stegoceras was the prime example of a pachycephalosaur ("thick-headed lizard"), a family of ornithischian, plant-eating, bipedal dinosaurs, known for their extremely thick skulls. Although Stegoceras had a sleek build, it had a large dome on its head made of thick solid bone. Similarly to modern day bisons, experts believe that Stegoceras males used their very strong heads to shove and head-butt each other to win females during breeding season.
This peculiar dinosaur lived in what is now North America around 75 million years ago, during the Late Cretaceous
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130points
Paleoart doesn't always need to feature dinosaurs, though they are the most prevalent. All prehistoric organisms, from early palm trees to woolly mammoths, make quite worthy subjects! Nevertheless, the charismatic reptiles were pretty much always at the center of attention, and for a significant period in the history of this art form, there was even a "dinosaur renaissance."
#6 Triceratops
Behold the mighty Triceratops, one of the most famous dinosaurs of all!
With its 3 iconic horns, a parrot-like beak, and a large frill, the skull of Triceratops is one of the largest and most striking of any land animal.
It is often considered the toughest of all dinosaurs, and indeed it used its sheer size, body strength, and imposing horns to fend off attacks from one of the deadliest predators to ever live, T-REX.
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123points
#7 Arctodus
Arctodus simus/short-faced bear. The short-faced Ibear was the largest and most powerful land carnivore in North America during the Ice Age. Its most distinctive feature was its very short face, hence its name. It was one of the largest bears to have ever lived, reaching a total body weight of about 700 kg.
Arctodus simus was much taller than modern bears, such as the grizzly bear, but not so heavily built. Additionally, its limbs were longer and more slender compared to modern relatives, suggesting that it was a fast hunter.
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123points
It is clear that natural history artwork has always relied heavily on science, but scientific communication also benefits increasingly from carefully executed scientific illustration, in the form of artwork for press releases, manuscript figures, and journal cover images.
#8 Pyroraptor
Pyroraptor was a dromaeosaurid, a small, bird-like predatory theropod that possessed enlarged curved claws on the second toe of each foot. In Pyroraptor, these claws were 6.5 centimeters long and, as in other dromaeosaurids, these claws might have been used as weapons or as climbing aids. Pyroraptor lived during the Late Cretaceous, approximately 70 millions of years ago, in what is now France and Spain.
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120points
#9 Guanlong
In the late Jurassic it would have been hard to believe that such a relatively small predator like Guanlong would lead to the evolution of one of the largest and most ferocious carnivorous dinosaurs of all, Tyrannosaurus rex! In fact, it is one of the first known tyrannosaurids and lived in China about 95 million years before Tyrannosaurus rex. Its name comes from the Chinese words meaning "crown" and "dragon", a clear reference to its unusual crest, one of the most distinct among known theropod dinosaurs, which was probably used for display and to intimidate rivals.
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119points
#10 Tupandactylus
Some of you know that I really enjoy depicting pterosaurs, especially the more "extreme" ones that used to live during the Cretaceous in what is now Brazil. Recently, a new and perfectly preserved pterosaur specimen of the genus Tupandactylus was discovered and what you see is my depiction of this once fascinating animal. Hope you like it!
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118points
#11 Brachiosaurus
The Mesozoic was a time when the ground was literally shaken by the colossal sauropods, the largest land animals to ever exist. Brachiosaurus was among the largest, with a length estimated at 26 meters and a weight of over 50 metric tons. It was so large in size that it was likely immune to all predators. Brachiosaurus had a huge body, a small head and an extremely long neck that allowed it to feed on the leaves of the tall trees that once grew in its habitat of North America. Thanks to their anatomical features, sauropods thrived for almost 100 millions years and were able to inhabit almost every continent.
"With their passing, life will never again be this large".
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110points
#12 Inostrancevia
Inostrancevia lived during the Late Permian period and was the largest of the gorgonopsid species. Inostrancevia's most striking feature was its long, saber-tooth-like canines. It had a total body length of around 3.5 m, a weight of 300 kg and a huge skull, which measured up to 60 cm in length. Inastroncevia was likely at the top of the food chain in Late Permian Russia, preying on the large herbivorous creatures it shared the land with.
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103points
#13 Archaeopteryx
Paleontologists view Archaeopteryx as a transitional fossil between dinosaurs and modern birds. With its blend of avian and reptilian features, it was long viewed as the earliest known bird. Discovered in 1860 in Germany, it's sometimes referred to as the "first bird". Its name is in fact a combination of two ancient Greek words: archaīos, meaning "ancient," and préryx, meaning "feather" or "wing." Archaeopteryx lived about 150 million years ago, during the late Jurassic Period in what is now southern Germany. At the time, most of Europe was an archipelago and was much closer to the equator than it is today, with latitude similar to Florida, providing this basal bird with a fairly warm climate. With an estimated weight of 0.8 kg, Archaeopteryx was about the size of the common raven. It also had well-developed wings and a long feathered tail. Based on these anatomical features, paleontologists believe that Archaeopteryx likely had some aerodynamic abilities, and could, therefore, fly.
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98points
#14 Ambulocetus
Ambulocetus was an early amphibious cetacean from Pakistan that lived roughly 48 million years ago during the Early Eocene. The name Ambulocetus means in fact “walking whale,” suggesting that this ancient mammal looked very different from modern whales and more like a dog-like animal. It likely lived both on land and in water, such as lakes and rivers.
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95points
#15 Pachycephalosaurus
The unusual and distinctive feature of Pachycephalosaurus is the high, domelike skull formed by a thick mass of solid bone, which safely cushioned its tiny brain. Abundant bony knobs at the front and sides of the skull further added to the unusual appearance. It has been suggested that these animals were head butters like living rams. Pachycephalosaurus lived during the Late Cretaceous Period of what is now North America.
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91points
#16 Stenonychosaurus
The considerable size of the skull of Stenonychosaurus contains one of the largest brain for its body size of any dinosaur, comparable to that of a modern emu. The teeth were sharp, curved, and serrated. The legs were particularly long and each foot was armed with a large killer claw, like that of the Velociraptor. Its large eyes suggest that Stenonychosaurus had keen eyesight and most likely hunted small prey, such as mammals, birds, and reptiles, at night or at dusk.
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91points
#17 Bambiraptor
Bambiraptor is a Late Cretaceous, bird-like dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaur, which lived in North America. Although only juvenile specimens have been described, it is estimated that a fully grown Bambiraptor would have reached up to 1.5 meters in total length, and perhaps weighed only 5 kilograms. Bambiraptor was likely covered in feathers, and its skeleton shared many similarities with that of a modern bird. Based on analysis of the skull, experts suggest that this species had a brain nearly as large and complex as that of some modern birds. Bambiraptor was also a fast runner and a fierce hunter that may have preyed on small Cretaceous mammals and reptiles.
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90points
#18 Pterodactylus
Pterodactylus is an iconic pterosaur that lived during the Late Jurassic in Germany. It was relatively small for a pterosaur, with a wingspan ranging from 50 centimeters to about 1 meter.
It most likely hunted fish and had many long and narrow conical-shaped teeth.
Like other pterosaurs, Pterodactylus had a crest on its skull composed mainly of soft tissues. However, solid crests have been found on larger, fully grown specimens, indicating that this was a display structure that became larger and more well developed as individuals reached maturity.
Like other pterosaurs, Pterodactylus had a crest on its skull composed mainly of soft tissues. However, solid crests have been found on larger, fully grown specimens, indicating that this was a display structure that became larger and more well developed as individuals reached maturity.
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89points
#19 Parasaruolophus
Parasaruolophus was a truly bizarre herbivorous dinosaur. Its most striking feature was the long bony crest projecting from the back of the skull. It was hollow and contained a series of tubes that elongated the nasal passages. Perhaps it was used to produce calls in order to keep in touch with its herd in the heart of thick forests. Other theories propose that the crest was used for display or as a means of thermoregulation.
It was a docile herbivore but of considerable size, in fact, its body length is estimated at 9.5 meters, for a weight of over 2 tons.
Parasaruolophus belonged to the hadrosaur family, a group of large herbivorous dinosaurs that is part of to the order of the Ornithischians, which lived during the Cretaceous period.
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84points
#20 Bambiraptor
Bambiraptor is a Late Cretaceous, bird-like dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaur, which lived in North America.
Although only juvenile specimens have been described, it is estimated that a fully grown Bambiraptor would have reached up to 1.5 meters in total length, and perhaps weighed only 5 kilograms. Bambiraptor was likely covered in feathers, and its skeleton shared many similarities with that of a modern bird. Based on analysis of the skull, experts suggest that this species had a brain nearly as large as that of some modern birds. Bambiraptor was also a fast runner and a fierce hunter that may have preyed on small Cretaceous mammals and reptiles.
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81points