博物微觀——古菱齒象化石
Splendors of Luoyang Museum: The Palaeoloxodon Fossil
古菱齒象化石,1994年出土於華陽大酒店的施工現場。經修復後長5.7米,高2.8米。軀體雄偉龐大,兩根門齒粗壯。生活在距今3到5萬年前地質時期的更新世晚期。古菱齒象屬亞洲象,由於這類象的臼齒磨蝕到一定程度後,齒板的中央就會擴大呈菱形,因此而得名。古菱齒象化石的發現有力的證明了中原地區氣候溫暖溼潤。河南簡稱為「豫」,《說文解字》釋「豫」為「象之大者」,可見古代河南與象有著不解之緣。
The Palaeoloxodon Fossil was excavated at the construction site of Huayang Hotel in 1994. The restored elephant fossil is 5.7 meters long and 2.8 meters tall, with a giant physical appearance and two straight tusks. It lived in the late Pleistocene of the pre-geologic period about 30,000 to 50,000 years ago. Being a species of Asian elephants, the palaeoloxodon got its Chinese name because the center of the tooth plate would expand into a diamond shape after the molars wearing out over time. The discovery of the palaeoloxodon fossil constituted a solid proof of the humid and warm climate of the central China. Henan is called Yu in short, which refers to the biggest elephant in Analytical Dictionary of Chinese Characters (the first Chinese dictionary organized by radical). It proves that there once lived a great number of elephants in Henan.
中文:郭榮
英文:周媛