It roamed Texas long before the first dinosaurs. Growing to 12 ft in length, with powerful jaws and specialized teeth for stabbing and tearing apart its prey, it was not a creature you’d want to encounter while on a Saturday morning hike. “It” was Dimetrodon limbatus, and a fossilized skeleton of the Paleozoic predator was recently scanned by NVision, a leader in 3D noncontact optical scanning/measurement, for the Texas Through Time museum in Hillsboro, Texas. The detailed scan data will enable the paleontology museum to 3D-print exact replicas of the fossil for further study and education.

Billed as the “Best Little Fossil Museum in Texas,” the nonprofit Texas Through Time was created by paleontologist Andre LuJan to preserve and promote the rich fossil history of the Lone Star State. Free to the public, the museum features a wide assortment of fossils from all ages and formations, including many one-of-a-kind fossils not available anywhere else. Although primarily focused on the noteworthy fossil diversity of Texas, the museum’s collection also includes fossils from around the world.

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