REPORT OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VERTEBRATE FOSSILS 

 IN THE I T . S. NATIONAL MUSEUM. 1892. 



By <).('. Marsh, Honorary Curator. 



The most important event in this department of the Museum during 

 the past year has been the accession of a large collection of vertebrate 

 fossils from the West, secured by the honorary curator during his 

 official work for the U. S. Geological Survey. These specimens were 

 prepared in New Haven, sent to the National Museum in July, 1891, 

 and placed at once on exhibition, so as to be accessible to the members 

 of the International Geological Congress, which met in Washington 

 in August of that year. This collection of fossils, which is more exten- 

 sive and important than any other hitherto received by the Museum, 

 is arranged in a wall-case especially constructed for it, extending the 

 entire length of the east side of the exhibition room. 



These specimens, selected by the honorary curator as the first instal- 

 ment of his official collections to be placed in the National Museum, 

 arc all of large size, and especially characteristic of three important 

 geological horizons of the West. The ceratops beds of the upper Cre- 

 taceous of Wyoming are here represented by three skulls and other 

 rare remains of the gigantic horned dinosaurs recently described, and 

 among these fossils is the type of Triceratops elatus Marsh. From the 

 Brontotheriuin beds of Nebraska and Dakota is shown a very complete 

 series of skulls and portions of skeletons of the huge Miocene mam- 

 mals of the family Brontotheridce. This scries contains ten good skulls 

 representing several genera, and is by far the most important collec- 

 tion of the group ever placed on exhibition. The horizon of the Plio- 

 cene, known as the Pliohippus beds, is likewise represented by skulls 

 and other remains of extinct species of the Rhinoceros family, espe- 

 cially of the genus Aceratherium, all from Phillips County, Kans. A 

 few other Tertiary fossils and some rare casts are included in this col- 

 lection, but the limited space available prevented the exhibition of a 

 more extensive series. 



This collection, when sent from New Haven in 33 boxes, weighed 

 6,860 pounds. It has now been catalogued and well arranged by Mr. 

 F. A. Lucas, assistant curator, whose services in other respects have 



169 



