Mammuthus meridionalis

Discovered in 1869 during roadworks at Durfort in the Gard, this fossil skeleton of a southern mammoth (Mammuthus meridionalis) was acquired by the Muséum in 1872 and was prepared for display by Jean-Benjamin Stahl, head of the cast workshop. It has reigned over the Gallery of Palaeontology since it opened in 1898.

This mammoth was a young male measuring more than 4 metres in height at the shoulder and almost 6 metres in length. Like its contemporaries, it was very large in size, its skin was quite rough and its molars were large with a small number of thick lamellae. Living in a forest environment under a mild climate, it principally fed on the leaves of oak and beech trees and lived alongside bison, red deer, rhinoceros, horses, etc., as evidenced by remains found nearby. 

The Durfort mammoth is not a woolly mammoth, like its Siberian cousin neighbour in the Gallery, but rather a southern mammoth. This genus, the oldest in Europe, lived in Eurasia between 3 and 1 million years ago. It arrived in America via the Bering isthmus about 1.5 million years ago.

The Mammuthus (mammoth genus of Siberia) and Elephas (present day elephant genus of Asia) spread from Africa to Europe and Asia, while the history of Loxodonta (genus of the African elephant) is exclusively known in Africa. A million years ago, there were ten proboscideans living on Earth, only two survive today. All of the mammoths have died out.

Paul Cazalis de Fondouce and Jules Ollier de Marichand discovered and oversaw the complete excavation of the specimen and its acquisition by the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle.

Extracted from its deposit more than 150 years ago, the Durfort mammoth showed signs of alterations that required intervention. A campaign of restoration took place between May 2022 and June 2023.

There were several causes for the visible degradation of the fossil skeleton, its metal supporting structure and its wooden podium:

• the original friability and powdery nature of the fossilised bones, the extraction of which took many years.
• the two consecutive installations of the skeleton on the site of the Jardin des Plantes before it was moved to the Gallery of Palaeontology when it opened in 1898.
• the ravages of time and display conditions, pollution and the careless hands of countless visitors. 

The principal aim of the restoration was to remove the grime and to consolidate fragile areas of the mammoth’s fossilised bones. Once the skeleton was completely dismantled, the bones were cleaned to remove the dirt that had built up over time, and they were then consolidated using restoration techniques and expertise. The previous plaster and organic fillings were removed and replaced by more stable and reversible resins. The cracks were filled and fractures were mended. 

This operation permitted a detailed understanding of the composition of the mammoth skeleton. The fossil portion is considerable; however certain missing elements had been replaced during the first mounting of the skeleton in the 19th century. As a result, certain ribs and vertebrae are of wood. Plaster was also used to complete the skeleton and to fill in missing fossil material. By closely observing the mammoth skeleton, you will be able to spot the wooden portions (brown in colour) and plaster elements (lighter in colour and more homogeneous than the original bones).

The restoration of the mammoth also provided an opportunity to correct certain errors in the historical mount. The main change was to alter its gait to an amble, the natural gait of its elephant cousins. The neck, which was too long, was shortened and the tail was given a more appropriate curve. However, the shape of the skull, which does not conform to that of a southern mammoth, and which was reconstructed in the 19th century using an Asian elephant as a model, was not modified. This choice was made in order to preserve the specimen’s rich scientific and historical heritage. 

The restoration of the Durfort mammoth was made possible by the generosity of more than 2000 donors. The Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle extends its warmest thanks for their contribution.