Researchers in Italy have uncovered some enlightening new information about a fossil believed to depict a 280-million-year-old reptile that has been cited in many books and articles over the years. While the fossil, first discovered in the Italian Alps in 1931, was believed to consist of skin and .
What was once thought to be a well-preserved fossil of an ancient reptile has been revealed to be a forgery made using black paint, carved rock and a couple of bones.