SIDMOUTH Museum has expressed an interest in a 90-million-year-old reptile skull unearthed by a fossil enthusiast.
Mike Harrison, of Fortfield Mews, Sidmouth, discovered the 25-stone skull of an Ichthyosaur while out scouring a large landslip in Lyme Regis.
It took months to collect and piece together the fragments of the skull, which is about 30 feet long. He found the last piece of the Temnodontosaurus Paltyodon in July.
Having registered his find with Charmouth Heritage Centre, he is free to keep it or sell it on, and would be keen to see it on display in a local museum.
He said: “I would’ve liked to have kept it, but it’s too big and it would be selfish to keep it to myself, as so many people want to see it.”
Sidmouth Museum curator Bob Symes was keen to consider the offer.
He said: “We’d be interested on seeing the skull and taking it from there. We’d have to look at the price and the thing itself before making any decisions.
“The museum would find it hard to find funding, but we could apply to the Keith Owen Fund, which is available for this sort of thing.”
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