Mary Anning 1799 -1847
Mary Anning
Mary Anning was born in 1799 and lived on the South Coast of England. She began to find and prepare "curiosities" with her father which she found on the coast line in Lyme Regis. She continued this work after her father died in order to support her family as visitors to the resort bought her "curiosities".
Did you know she had a tongue twister written about her? How quickly can you say it without a mistake?
She sells sea shells on the sea shore.
The "curiosities" she discovered were actually fossils from the Mesozoic Era and included both vertebrates and invertebrates and marine and terrestrial animals. Due to the period of time in which she worked, some of her discoveries were not acknowledged as her work and she was not allowed to join the Society of Geologists because they did not accept women.
She discovered some very large and important fossils including an ichthyosaur, plesiosaur and pterosaur. She was also an expert in coprolites or fossilised poo.
There are lots of activities to choose from and websites that you can explore to find out more about Mary Anning and fossils. You can also draw or make your own.