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If We Drew Modern Animals The Way We Draw Dinosaurs, Based On Bones Alone

December 1, 2019

C. M. Kosemen always had an interest in dinosaurs but felt something was a bit off.

C.M. Koseman

"We were both dinosaur geeks, but the more we looked at these skeletons, and the more we looked at the pictures, we noticed that most mainstream dinosaur art didn't look at dinosaurs as real creatures," Kosemen told Atlas Obscura.

"For example there could plant-eating dinosaurs that had pangolin or armadillo-like armor that wasn't preserved in the fossil. There could also be dinosaurs with porcupine-type quills."

So, he made illustrations of modern animals on how they might be interpreted by future paleoartists.

Swan

Credit: C. M. Kosemen

It's sort of a "shrink wrap" effect. The skin is tight against the muscles, no flab, no hair, no feathers.

Hippo

Credit: C. M. Kosemen

Baboon

Credit: C. M. Kosemen

Elephant, Zebra, and Rhino

Credit: C. M. Kosemen

Visit C. M. Kosemen's website or follow him on Instagram to see more. View his TEDx talk "Re-imagining dinosaurs through intelligent speculation".