Gideon Mantell & Sir Richard Owen: The First Bone Wars
If you are a fan of dinosaurs, you may already know about one of the most famous scientific rivalries of all time – the great Bone Wars, waged between Edward Drinker Cope and Othniel Marsh in the late 19th century. These two scientists were responsible for discovering many of the most famous dinosaurs and filled up several museums with their discoveries. During their lives, they were also known for always trying to outdo each other and weren’t above playing some pretty dirty tricks on one another. In some cases they even stole bones from their rival’s excavation sites in the Wild West of the United States.
However, 50 years before Cope and Marsh were battling over huge, complete dinosaur fossils, two of the earliest scientists in the field of paleontology were waging their own Bone War in England over some of the first fragments of dinosaur bones ever found. Gideon Mantell and Richard Owen fought one of the most bitter battles in the history of science.
Gideon Mantell was the very first scientist to figure out that the pieces of huge bones being found in England in the 1820’s belonged to an extinct type of reptile. He was a country doctor who had a great passion for geology and science. Richard Owen became one of the most influential scientists of his time in the middle of the 19th century in England and the rest of Europe. How these two men ended up as enemies is one of the fascinating footnotes to the history of paleontology.
Dinosaur fossils in England were unlike those found later in the United States. Only bits and pieces of dinosaurs were being discovered. In one instance, just a part of a tooth was all that was first found, and from this small fragment, Mantell tried to figure out what the entire animal might look like. Mantell was finding and describing fossils while Owen was still a child. However, by the time Owen was in his twenties, he was already a renowned scientist. And, he was also getting a reputation for taking credit for other peoples work.
It was the Iguanodon that really heated up the battle between Mantell and Owen. Mantell had made the early discovery of a single Iguanodon tooth in 1821. Since no one had any idea what dinosaurs looked like at that time, there were many wild ideas of how this newly discovered reptile might look since there was only one tooth for evidence. The name Iguanodon means “iguana tooth” because the tooth found by Mantell looked like a giant version of the tooth from a modern iguana. As more bones were found, including parts of leg bones, it became apparent that they were indeed looking at the bones of a giant reptile – or so they thought.
Since what we know about dinosaurs today was unknown in the early 1800’s, Mantell thought that the tooth and bones belonged to a reptile that looked just like a modern iguana, only gigantic. He had no idea that the legs of Iguanodon were under its body, as we know today. Mantell figured they were like other reptiles. Based on the size of the tooth and the few other bone fragments he had, he thought Iguanodon might be 200 feet (33 meters) long.
Up until the early 1840’s both scientists had been friendly. It was in the early 1840’s that Richard Owen began to do two things that angered Mantell. First, he began to question the conclusions that Mantell had reached about Iguanodon. Owen had access to a microscope, something that Mantell did not have, and was able to look at the fossils in a new way. He used his findings to try and make it seem that Mantell’s research was poorly done. The second thing Owen did, and would continue to do for many years, was try and take credit for some of Mantell’s discoveries and research.
By the Late 1840’s, Sir Richard Owen had become one of the most powerful and influential scientists in Europe. Kings and heads of state would invite him to give talks about the new discoveries of ancient creatures that were being made. However, among his colleagues, Owen had a very poor reputation. He was thought of as someone who was willing to take credit for the work of others in order to further his career.
Gideon Mantell had been severely injured in a carriage accident in 1841. This prevented him from doing much of the work that he needed to do in order to keep up with his rival. For the next 11 years, until he died, Mantell watched Owen take credit for many of his discoveries. What was possibly most hurtful to Mantell was when Owen ignored some of the more important discoveries about Iguanodon that Mantell had found, such as the fact that the front legs were much smaller than the back. This would have shown that Iguanodon could have stood upright and used its front legs for grasping and defense.
Fortunately for Mantell, he had a number of scientist friends who were willing to go up against the powerful Owen on his behalf. One of the most vocal was the Reverend William Buckland. He often stood up for Mantell against Owen. Buckland was a very influential minister who was also a famous geologist and fossil hunter.
When Gideon Mantell died in 1852, a very nasty letter about him was written in the form of an obituary. It was not signed, but everyone knew it had been written by Sir Richard Owen. Stooping so low as to insult the memory of someone who had just died angered many of his scientific colleagues. In addition, a young scientist named Thomas Huxley had become a part of the scientific community in England. Huxley was brilliant and a fiery, persuasive speaker. In several debates he had with Owen, he made the older scientist look foolish and petty.
What finally ended Owen’s influence in the scientific community was the publication of Charles Darwin’s book on evolution. Owen did not want to accept it as science while all around him realized that evolution explained all the unanswered questions about prehistoric creatures. Owen lived long enough to see much of his work, once considered brilliant, discredited. Shortly after he died a teacher at Oxford called him “a damned liar. He lied for God and for malice. A bad case.”
Today we remember both men. Gideon Mantell is now recognized as a brilliant thinker, someone who was able to recreate a world from long ago with only a few fragmentary clues. Sir Richard Owen is remembered mainly for one thing. He gave the world a new word that is one of the most recognized in the whole world. He is the man who coined the word Dinosaur.
However, 50 years before Cope and Marsh were battling over huge, complete dinosaur fossils, two of the earliest scientists in the field of paleontology were waging their own Bone War in England over some of the first fragments of dinosaur bones ever found. Gideon Mantell and Richard Owen fought one of the most bitter battles in the history of science.
Gideon Mantell was the very first scientist to figure out that the pieces of huge bones being found in England in the 1820’s belonged to an extinct type of reptile. He was a country doctor who had a great passion for geology and science. Richard Owen became one of the most influential scientists of his time in the middle of the 19th century in England and the rest of Europe. How these two men ended up as enemies is one of the fascinating footnotes to the history of paleontology.
Dinosaur fossils in England were unlike those found later in the United States. Only bits and pieces of dinosaurs were being discovered. In one instance, just a part of a tooth was all that was first found, and from this small fragment, Mantell tried to figure out what the entire animal might look like. Mantell was finding and describing fossils while Owen was still a child. However, by the time Owen was in his twenties, he was already a renowned scientist. And, he was also getting a reputation for taking credit for other peoples work.
It was the Iguanodon that really heated up the battle between Mantell and Owen. Mantell had made the early discovery of a single Iguanodon tooth in 1821. Since no one had any idea what dinosaurs looked like at that time, there were many wild ideas of how this newly discovered reptile might look since there was only one tooth for evidence. The name Iguanodon means “iguana tooth” because the tooth found by Mantell looked like a giant version of the tooth from a modern iguana. As more bones were found, including parts of leg bones, it became apparent that they were indeed looking at the bones of a giant reptile – or so they thought.
Since what we know about dinosaurs today was unknown in the early 1800’s, Mantell thought that the tooth and bones belonged to a reptile that looked just like a modern iguana, only gigantic. He had no idea that the legs of Iguanodon were under its body, as we know today. Mantell figured they were like other reptiles. Based on the size of the tooth and the few other bone fragments he had, he thought Iguanodon might be 200 feet (33 meters) long.
Up until the early 1840’s both scientists had been friendly. It was in the early 1840’s that Richard Owen began to do two things that angered Mantell. First, he began to question the conclusions that Mantell had reached about Iguanodon. Owen had access to a microscope, something that Mantell did not have, and was able to look at the fossils in a new way. He used his findings to try and make it seem that Mantell’s research was poorly done. The second thing Owen did, and would continue to do for many years, was try and take credit for some of Mantell’s discoveries and research.
By the Late 1840’s, Sir Richard Owen had become one of the most powerful and influential scientists in Europe. Kings and heads of state would invite him to give talks about the new discoveries of ancient creatures that were being made. However, among his colleagues, Owen had a very poor reputation. He was thought of as someone who was willing to take credit for the work of others in order to further his career.
Gideon Mantell had been severely injured in a carriage accident in 1841. This prevented him from doing much of the work that he needed to do in order to keep up with his rival. For the next 11 years, until he died, Mantell watched Owen take credit for many of his discoveries. What was possibly most hurtful to Mantell was when Owen ignored some of the more important discoveries about Iguanodon that Mantell had found, such as the fact that the front legs were much smaller than the back. This would have shown that Iguanodon could have stood upright and used its front legs for grasping and defense.
Fortunately for Mantell, he had a number of scientist friends who were willing to go up against the powerful Owen on his behalf. One of the most vocal was the Reverend William Buckland. He often stood up for Mantell against Owen. Buckland was a very influential minister who was also a famous geologist and fossil hunter.
When Gideon Mantell died in 1852, a very nasty letter about him was written in the form of an obituary. It was not signed, but everyone knew it had been written by Sir Richard Owen. Stooping so low as to insult the memory of someone who had just died angered many of his scientific colleagues. In addition, a young scientist named Thomas Huxley had become a part of the scientific community in England. Huxley was brilliant and a fiery, persuasive speaker. In several debates he had with Owen, he made the older scientist look foolish and petty.
What finally ended Owen’s influence in the scientific community was the publication of Charles Darwin’s book on evolution. Owen did not want to accept it as science while all around him realized that evolution explained all the unanswered questions about prehistoric creatures. Owen lived long enough to see much of his work, once considered brilliant, discredited. Shortly after he died a teacher at Oxford called him “a damned liar. He lied for God and for malice. A bad case.”
Today we remember both men. Gideon Mantell is now recognized as a brilliant thinker, someone who was able to recreate a world from long ago with only a few fragmentary clues. Sir Richard Owen is remembered mainly for one thing. He gave the world a new word that is one of the most recognized in the whole world. He is the man who coined the word Dinosaur.