A Lund University student researching the cognitive abilities of animals was given a Rebor Oddities “Extinction” figure as a gift on completion of her PhD. Everything Dinosaur was contacted by an academic from The Cognitive Zoology Group at Lund University (Sweden), when the pair of limited-edition Rebor Oddities “Extinction” figures were first publicised. Associate Professor Mathias Osvath, wanted to gift a figure to his PhD students as they completed their doctorates.

Rebor Oddities “Extinction” Figure

Rebor produced two versions of their Oddities “Extinction” figure. Both figures are cast in elastic resin and polystone and feature a Velociraptor in contemplation holding a human skull in its right hand. The beautifully detailed dromaeosaurid is perched on a stack of twenty-three books, one book for each of our twenty-three pairs of chromosomes.

The books represent an eclectic range of publications. They are a combination of fiction and non-fiction and include titles such as The Divine Comedy, the Poems of Longfellow, Gray’s Anatomy and the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin.

Such was the interest from academics and collectors that Everything Dinosaur compiled a list of the books featured on the models in an earlier blog post: The Rebor Extinction Library.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

Dinosaur Cognition

Cognitive studies of the Dinosauria constitute an intriguing area of scientific enquiry. Everything Dinosaur expects to see several papers on dinosaur cognition being published in the near future. We wish Claudia and the other successful PhD students every success as they pursue their careers.

When asked about the special dinosaur present, Associate Professor Osvath commented:

“The gift was a success! During the party people started to notice that more or less every book the dino is sitting on had titles on the back, or even front covers. It can only be seen when shining bright light from the sides and using magnifying glasses. It must have been educated people, with a sense of humour, who designed these figures.”

“Le Penseur”

There are two variants of the Rebor “Oddities” Extinction figure. The Victorian neoclassical marble version was despatched by Everything Dinosaur to Lund University but there is also the same figure in a Renaissance bronze finish.

The Rebor “Oddities” Extinction figures remind Everything Dinosaur’s team members of Auguste Rodin’s famous sculpture “The Thinker”, also known as “Le Penseur”.

To view the range of Rebor figures and replicas in stock at Everything Dinosaur including the extinction figures (whilst stocks last): Rebor Models and Replicas.