PROJECT 23: NEW DISCOVERIES AT RANCHO LA BREA

During recent construction in the parkland area, 16 asphaltic deposits were recovered from the construction site. Twenty three enormous intact blocks were lifted out of the earth and crated with wooden planks into "tree" boxes, which range in size from 5x5x5 feet (weighing 3 tons) to 12x15x10 feet (weighing 56 tons). The name Project 23: New Discoveries at Rancho La Brea is a reference to the twenty three extracted crates.

So that scientists may focus on Project 23, the Page Museum has temporarily halted excavations at Pit 91, one of the world's most plentiful urban excavation sites. A public observation area remains in place.

The Project 23 excavation team has uncovered over 700 measured specimens including a large pre-historic American Lion skull, lion bones, dire wolves, saber-toothed cats, juvenile horse and bison, teratorn, coyotes, lynx, and ground sloths so far.

Most rare of all is a well-preserved male Columbian mammoth fossil, about 80% complete, with 10-feet long intact tusks found in an ancient river bed near the other discoveries and is the first complete individual mammoth to have been found in Rancho La Brea. In recognition of the importance of the find, paleontologists at the Page Museum have nicknamed the mammoth "Zed."

When Zed was removed from the ground, his fossilized remains were encased, along with their surrounding soil, in plaster "jackets" and taken to the Page Museum. In the Museum's famous Fish Bowl laboratory you can observe paleontologists as they are carefully excavating the bones from these jackets.

For press information, click here.
For regular updates on Project 23, read the excavator's blog.