period: Pleistocene (115-11.7 thousand years ago)

excavation site: Kopińska, Warsaw (Masovia)

The bones of the mammoth were discovered on the depth of 5 m in 1971 during ground works on the route of projected Jerozolimskie alleys. The mammoth died in its prime years when it was ca. 30 years old. The pelvic bones were not found therefore the sex of the mammoth remains undefined. Mammoths were as big as 2.4 m and weighed as much as 6 t. Mammoths were hunted for fur, meat and bones which were used to produce weapons, tools and even whole habitations. They became extinct probably due to climate change, genetic weakening and human activity around 10 thousand years ago, but close pygmy relatives lived on Wrangel Island even in the times of Pharaohs (even around 3750 years ago).

The piece comes from the collection of Polish Academy of Sciences Museum of the Earth in Warsaw.