A dinosaur skull measuring nearly a foot in length has been discovered embedded in the balustrade support in the Cathedral of St. Ambrose, a 16th-century church in Vigevano, Italy. We don’t yet know what kind of dinosaur it was, however, although 3D modeling may shed light on the answer.

How did the dinosaur skull wind up there?

The calcareous rock in which the dinosaur remains are embedded comes from the rich fossil-bearing site of Mount San Giorgio, which is on the Unesco World Heritage List. “It is called Broccatello and was mined in Arzo, Switzerland. We know that this type of rock dates geologically to the Lower Jurassic, about 190 million years ago,” [paleontologist Andrea] Tintori said.

(Discovery News via A Blog About History via @pbump. title photograph by Andrea Tintori)

Have a tip we should know? tips@themarysue.com