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Submitted: September 22, 2010
Image Size: 6.3 MB
Resolution: 2541×3304

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Tragedy of the Archbishopby ~Paleo-King

Traditional Art / Drawings / Animals

NOW FEATURED on SV-POW! [link]

150 million years ago in Tanzania, a subadult 'Archbishop' brachiosaur struggles to stay afloat after getting stuck in a deceptively lake-like bog. Surrounded by vicious predators and drowning plant-eaters of all shapes, sizes and ages, the desperation of his situation becomes clear to one and all - and yet driven by the tempting aroma of so many tons of fresh meat, hungry hunters keep coming to the death trap. A veritable mud pie of nearly all the Tendaguru fauna, sinking ever deeper, screaming and gasping to escape their inevitable looming doom. Only the vicious crocodiles below, and tiny pterosaurs above which once relied on the giant for shelter and protection are free to scavenge here and escape unharmed, and even they have to watch it.

Suggested background music: [link]

NOTES: The 'Archbishop' is a large brachiosaur that shared the Tengaduru habitat with "Brachiosaurus" (Giraffatitan) brancai, and for many years was mistaken for the same animal. It has since been shown to be a different and even longer-necked genus, but has yet to be formally described and given a name.

To my knowledge, this is the first ever 'life restoration' of the Archbishop, and only the second time it's ever been illustrated (the first was also by me: [link]).

The type (and only) specimen is currently under study by Dr. Michael P. Taylor [link] of SV-POW [link] in the British Museum of Natural History. It was excavated by Frederick Migeod (who hastily mistook it for B. brancai) in 1930, at which point Tanzania was in British control, having switched hands after WWI. A number of Migeod's original bones have supposedly been lost, and many are as yet unprepared, but there's still enough material to do a good reconstruction.

For a nice powerpoint on the Archbishop, go to Dr. Taylor's website here: [link] and click on the link labeled "slides".

~~sad 0 0~~

~~fear 0 0~~

~~neutral 0 0~~

~randomdinos 4 days ago

Is the bog THAT deep, to drown an Arcbishop, or is it just supposed to die from exhaustion? With a neck that big, I doubt it could drown in such places..

~Paleo-King 1 day ago Professional Traditional Artist

Bogs could be pretty deep if they were formed from sinkholes (which can actually collapse further inward a second time if the underlying stone is porous enough). However death from exhaustion or starvation would be more likely. Some bogs can be 40-50ft. deep or more (enough to drown a large brachiosaur) but plenty are shallower than that.

~thediremoose 2 days ago

The studies that debunked the amphibious sauropod hypothesis concluded that at sufficient depths, the water pressure would prevent a sauropod from expanding its chest to breathe. Presumably that would also kill the Archbishop here.

~kaiserlisk Jan 26, 2013

Funnily enough, I always saw most brachiosaurs as basically invincible. Their immense size and stature evoked a regal and majestic feeling, as if it were impossible to harm such magnificent creatures. Of course, being older I realize this is an unrealistic thought. But even now, looking at the Archbishop sink into the muck and mire is quite heartbreaking and fittingly tragic.

Sorry for getting all poignant, but this really is a spectacular piece. What mediums do you use?

~Paleo-King Jan 30, 2013 Professional Traditional Artist

Pencil for the most part. I too thought of brachiosaurs the same way. And it's true... to a point. Most brachiosaur species were too big for predators to attack, and vital organs like the heart and lungs were very high off the ground. Also the long arms meant greater reach to crush or punch attackers, and brachiosaurs were considerably heavier than diplodocids or basal sauropods of similar length. And their hips were beginning to flare out sideways more than other sauropods, allowing bigger thigh muscles and more dangerous lateral kicks to waste any theropod that got too close (a feature that got taken to even greater extremes in euhelopodids and titanosaurs).

Of course a drowning brachiosaur that's stuck in a bog will make a much easier target. But you can't take a bite without getting stuck yourself. If he's going down, he's taking you with him.

~SaucyLobster Dec 2, 2012

A very tragic scene for all involved but captivating none the less.

~MaxterandKiwiKing Nov 30, 2012 Hobbyist Digital Artist

I mean [link]

~Paleo-King Dec 4, 2012 Professional Traditional Artist

Too slow and march-like IMO. I like it, but that soundtrack doesn't fit with the speed and movement of this scene all that well.

~MaxterandKiwiKing Dec 5, 2012 Hobbyist Digital Artist

Awwwww.

~MaxterandKiwiKing Nov 30, 2012 Hobbyist Digital Artist

Here is my suggested background music: [link]

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