In the Thuringian Forest, scientists are once again delving into the depths of the earth’s history: An international summer excavation is currently underway at Bromacker near Tambach-Dietharz, where around 50 scientists are searching for fossilised remains from the Permian period. The fossil deposit is considered the most important site in Europe for finding prehistoric dinosaurs – and is also one of the most important of its kind in the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Until 20 June, the excavation team will be sifting through the 290 million-year-old layers of rock for evidence of early life on land. The experts come from various disciplines such as palaeontology, geology and scientific preparation – and also from different countries, including France, Italy, Bulgaria and the USA. The project is being coordinated by the Friedenstein Foundation Gotha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
More than 1,500 fossils have been recovered since intensive excavations began in 2020. They date from a time long before the dinosaurs, when the first land vertebrates began to adapt to life far from water. The finds provide important insights into the evolution of amphibians, insects and plants – and thus into a prehistoric ecosystem that once characterised the Thuringian Forest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The federal government had funded the scientific work with around six million euros over five years. This funding project is now coming to an end, but the state of Thuringia has already responded and pledged 500,000 euros in support for the continuation of the project from this summer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Bromacker in the Gotha district is therefore not only a hotspot for scientists, but also a place of public education. This year, interested visitors will once again have the opportunity to accompany the excavation team on site. Guided tours in German and English offer exciting insights into the work of palaeontologists – and into a world that existed almost 300 million years ago.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In the Thuringian Forest, scientists are once again delving into the depths of the earth’s history: An international summer excavation is currently underway at Bromacker near Tambach-Dietharz, where around 50 scientists are searching for fossilised remains from the Permian period. The fossil deposit is considered the most important site in Europe for finding prehistoric dinosaurs […]\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":8754,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[239],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11318","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-en"],"yoast_head":"\n