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98 THE CONDOR Vol. XXI 
size illustration is shown in figure 22. The reverse side (see figure 23), that 
upon which the egg may have lain for a long time, presents a roughened sur- 
face, the result of concretionary deposits of lime, a condition frequently 
noted in fossils of certain periods. No attempt has been made to remove these 
small, irregular nodules. Indeed; they, together with the opportunity they 
present for chemical analysis, furnish unquestionable proof of the genuineness 
of the egg, the value and importance of which most collectors cannot help bui 
appreciate in a subject of such rarity. 
Whether the shell of the egg is fossilized or not, its original contents has 
nearly disappeared; for, by holding the egg between the hands and reversing 
it end for end, one can plainly hear and feel what appears to be several table- 
spoonfuls of fine, sand-like material, or possibly thin scales. This probably 
does not exceed two ounces in weight. As stated, the present weight of the egg 
is but 5 pounds, 1 ounee, and its displacement is 18 2/3 pints, equivalent to the 
displacement of 183 hen’s eggs. 
Were the shell and original contents fossilized, it would weigh (assuming 
the weight of lime stone for the purpose) about 51 pounds, 5 ounces. Based 
“ : é s H 
‘ ) 
Fig. 20. EaG or AEPYORNIS (AT LEFT) IN COMPARISON WITH EGGS OF OSTRICH, HMU, ALBA- 
TROSS, SWAN, GOOSE, EIDER, MALLARD, HEN, MARSH HAWK, TEAL, ROAD-RUNNER, BUR- 
ROWING OWL, BOB-WHITE, FLICKER, WOODPECKER, LARK BUNTING, BANK SWALLOW, 
GOLDFINCH, HUMMINGBIRD. 
on the average weight of 48 assorted hen’s eggs used for the purpose, multi- 
pled by 183 displacement measurements, its weight when fresh would be 22 
pounds, 4 ounces. There being no fracture in the shell of the egg, its present 
thickness has not been determined. 
All figures given in the label accompanying the exhibit are based on an 
average of a series of tests for displacement, these being made with thoroughly 
dried table salt. As both bulk and weight were employed in computing the ; 
relative sizes of the several eggs, the figures may be considered as substantially ~ 
accurate. The descriptive matter on the exhibition label reads as follows. ri 
‘‘Closely related to the present day Ostrich and to the Moa of prehistoric 
times, the Aepyornis is known only through the scant fossil remains that have 
been unearthed from the sand-dunes of Madagascar. Like the Ostrich and 
Moa, it was without the power of flight and became extinct long before the 
first visits to the island by Portuguese and Dutch navigators. At that period, 
the natives claimed the bird still existed, but later investigations proved their 
