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dinosaur · dinosaurs · mongolia · News · tyrannosaur ·

Bone Smuggler

Here’s the latest on the stolen dinosaur bones which were auctioned off for a million bucks in May. The NY Daily News reviews the latest in the ongoing saga (interspersed with random “fossil” news). In short, the guy who obtained the fossils to build the skeleton that went to auction, has been spending his summer crabbing about the Supreme Court decision to return the fossils to the Mongolian government. A small army of paleontologists checked it out thoroughly and decided that there was no way possible that the fossils had come from anywhere BUT Mongolia, and it’s been illegal to remove them from the country without permission for the last 90 or so years. A paper trail was followed, and it led back to Prokopi who was sticking with a story that the fossils were legally obtained and he was just a guy who loved to put dinosaur skeletons together to feed his family. He felt like the Mongolian and US governments were being total jerks for trying to get to the bottom of things to get this pretty miraculous assemblage where it was supposed to be. Well, surprise. He was lying. He’s now been arrested and criminal charges for smuggling lots and lots of illegally obtained fossils have been filed. Photos of him actually digging stuff up out of the ground in Mongolia have come to light. His company website has an “about us” page, telling the story of how he and his wife built up the business of taking the rare treasures of other parts of the world, decorating Florida McMansions with their spoils and turning it into a profitable family business. He definitely thought he had the system figured out. I’d be less annoyed with this guy if he hadn’t been so adamant about getting the bones back and even trying to take legal action against the decision to return the skeleton to its rightful home. Now that he’s been nabbed he’s threatening that the black market for stolen fossils and artifacts will now be driven even deeper underground. No pun intended.
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Ako Castuera · Art · dinosaurs · Events · exhibition · GR2 · watercolors ·

GR2 April 7 – May 2 Art Exhibition – They Are Us – Ako Castuera

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – Art Exhibition at GR2 They Are Us – New Work by Ako Castuera April 7 – May 2, 2012 Opening reception Saturday April 7th 2012, 6:30-10pm GR2 – 2062 Sawtelle Blvd LA, CA 90025 www.gr2.net 310 445 9276   Giant Robot 2 (GR2) presents: They Are Us Solo exhibition by Ako Castuera Ako Castuera often shows at Giant Robot in group exhibitions. This will be her first solo effort at Giant Robot. Castuera’s work involves a look into the past which has brought us into the present. Along with her sweeping watercolor hills and valleys are dinosaurs and prehistoric animals. Castuera relays their significance as a dreaming point as well as their contribution in our ecosystem. Also in this exhibition will be sculptural work also depicting prehistoric animals captured in a modernistic style. Castuera’s work is colorful, dreamy and captures a concept that explains who we are and where we came from. Giant Robot was born as a Los Angeles-based magazine about Asian, Asian-American, and new hybrid culture in 1994, but has evolved into a full-service pop culture provider with shops and galleries in Los Angeles as well as an online equivalent. Eric Nakamura Giant Robot Owner/Publisher eric@giantrobot.com (310) 479-7311
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Art · caro · dinosaurs · el haru kuroi · luke chueh · mariachi el bronx · natural history museum · News ·

Night at the Museum II – Natural History Museum

The LA Natural History Museum isn’t as large as what you might see in NYC, but it does have a First Friday program featuring an open museum and separate admission for the bands who were in this case, Mariachi El Bronx and El Haru Kuroi. Both great bands sporting a Latin flavor. The sound isn’t at it’s best inside of a museum, but the energy was high and the bands played great.

Yet, the museum itself is a spectacle. On a first friday you can check it out for the price of admission, but do be careful. $10 parking. Why so high? Perhaps it’s because the museum has been redone and each of the sections I got to see looked spectacular. Clean, up to date and of course a great section on dinosaurs which is a must have if you’re going to boast natural history. Impressive and unlike the musty aired museum I remembered from way back. The gorilla at bottom looks real.

 

 

The skeletons look as good as they do anywhere else. The collection here is no joke and it’s probably highly underrated.

 

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