The Fossil That Started It All

When Edward Cope was only eight years old, his father took him to Philadelphia’s only museum of natural science at the time. There, the boy was mesmerized by the fossil of a giant ancient fish: the ichthyosaurus. From that day, Edward knew that his future would lie in the study of ancient animals. The very thought that remnants of giant, ancient creatures could still be found fascinated him and set the course of his life.