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Once upon a time, in an
island that is called today Crete, dwarf hippos, gigantic walking owls,
small elephants and short deer were living. Since then, thousands and
thousands of years went by. Then in the '60s and the '70s the
unforgettable German paleontologist Siegfried E. Kuss came and brought
to light more than eight thousand fossil bones of those animals.
This year, the Kuss collection was repatriated. Thanks to the
coordinated efforts of the Museum of Natural History of Crete and the
paleontologist Dr. George Eliopoulos, 8.200 samples travelled from the
Museum of Natural History in Karlsruhe, Germany to Crete. A small part
of the collection is already exhibited in the Museum of Natural History
of Crete.
The presence of
paleontologist Dr. George Eliopoulos in the Museum of Natural History of
Crete was crucial for the return of the Kuss collection to Crete. After
long contacts and discussions between the Museum of Natural History of
Crete and the director of Geological- Paleontological collections Dr.
Eberhard “Dino” Frey, the permanent bequest of the collection was
decided. It is the second time that a return of a paleontological
collection happens in Greece and the first time for Crete.
Maria Sarri
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