High resolution and 3-D fossil images online from the British Geological Survey

The British Geological Survey has launched a free online database of type fossils (a type fossil is a specimens, often in a museum collection that is used to define characteristic features of a species).   In the UK, fossil type specimens are stored in a number of locations across the country and there is no easy way to search across the many different catalogues. The GB3D Type Fossils Online project, funded by JISC, aims to develop a single database of the type specimens, held in British collections, of macrofossil species and subspecies found in the UK, including links to photographs (including ‘anaglyph’ stereo pairs) and a selection of 3D digital models. The BGS has carried out the work in collaboration with its partners: The National Museum of Wales; The Sedgwick Museum Cambridge; The University Museum of Natural History Oxford; and the Curators’ Group, which represents a number of regional museums.