How This Reconstruction "Evolved"
With my fourth attempt at a reconstruction of Murraburrasaurus
langdoni, I thought it might be interesting to see how my view
of Muttaburrasaurus has changed over the years.
1996
This was my first attempt. My method of rendering shadow was rough
(but still interesting I think). I had little knowledge of the bones
at the time, so the head is too big for a start. The presence of a
thumb spike reflects the view at the time of Muttaburrasaurus
being an Iguanodontid. The first skull lacked the front most region,
so it was thought that the nasal bulla (the bump on the nose) curved
smoothly to the end of the snout as in Iguanodon orientalis (now
known as Altirhinus orientalis). I used a reconstruction of
a hadrosaur to determine the pose, so the downflex in the spinal column
behind the neck is probably too extreme for a supposed Iguanodontid.
1997
My method of rendering shadow has improved some what, and my illustrating
style has changed (I had switched from using mainly lines to mainly dots).
The head is still too large, however the thumb spike has been removed.
At this time Muttaburrasaurus is no longer considered Iguanodontian,
but rather a basal ornithopod more "primitive" than Tenontosaurus.
This is a much leaner beast, looking somewhat like a giant Hypsilophodontid.
The hadrosaurian down-flex in the spinal column has been smoothed out.
1998
The discovery of the second Muttaburrasaurus
skull seems to show that the nasal bulla did not curve smoothly to
the end of the snout, but rather terminates at the snout with a sudden
down turn. This is a large, heavy beast again. The head has been reduced
in size. The forepaws have five fingers (a primitive condition amongst
large ornithopods). My illustrating style is now a mixture of both lines
and dots. I have added the mean-looking heavy brows over the eyes that
most ornithopods (and indeed many ornithischians) had.
1999
After a complete re-evaluation of my skeletal reconstruction, I finally
managed to get the various skeletal elements at the same scale. The
head is much smaller than previously illustrated (although it should be the right
size now). I have abandoned ink in favour of pencil. I suspect even this
illustration will need to be changed as the Muttaburrasaurus material
is fully prepared. The Queensland Museum is in the process of creating a
new skeletal mount (the existing one still has the old head, and has
a spike on its thumb). When it is complete I may discover errors in this
illustration - such as the hands which I have mostly guessed at.
Back to Muttaburrasaurus
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This was my first attempt. My method of rendering shadow was rough
(but still interesting I think). I had little knowledge of the bones
at the time, so the head is too big for a start. The presence of a
thumb spike reflects the view at the time of Muttaburrasaurus
being an Iguanodontid. The first skull lacked the front most region,
so it was thought that the nasal bulla (the bump on the nose) curved
smoothly to the end of the snout as in Iguanodon orientalis (now
known as Altirhinus orientalis). I used a reconstruction of
a hadrosaur to determine the pose, so the downflex in the spinal column
behind the neck is probably too extreme for a supposed Iguanodontid.
My method of rendering shadow has improved some what, and my illustrating
style has changed (I had switched from using mainly lines to mainly dots).
The head is still too large, however the thumb spike has been removed.
At this time Muttaburrasaurus is no longer considered Iguanodontian,
but rather a basal ornithopod more "primitive" than Tenontosaurus.
This is a much leaner beast, looking somewhat like a giant Hypsilophodontid.
The hadrosaurian down-flex in the spinal column has been smoothed out.
The discovery of the second Muttaburrasaurus
skull seems to show that the nasal bulla did not curve smoothly to
the end of the snout, but rather terminates at the snout with a sudden
down turn. This is a large, heavy beast again. The head has been reduced
in size. The forepaws have five fingers (a primitive condition amongst
large ornithopods). My illustrating style is now a mixture of both lines
and dots. I have added the mean-looking heavy brows over the eyes that
most ornithopods (and indeed many ornithischians) had.
After a complete re-evaluation of my skeletal reconstruction, I finally
managed to get the various skeletal elements at the same scale. The
head is much smaller than previously illustrated (although it should be the right
size now). I have abandoned ink in favour of pencil. I suspect even this
illustration will need to be changed as the Muttaburrasaurus material
is fully prepared. The Queensland Museum is in the process of creating a
new skeletal mount (the existing one still has the old head, and has
a spike on its thumb). When it is complete I may discover errors in this
illustration - such as the hands which I have mostly guessed at.