Mongolian "Warriors Tyrannosaurus" fossils return home, on first exhibition

ULAN BATOR, June 8 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of spectators and reporters gathered at the Sukhbaatar Square of Ulan Bator Saturday, waiting to have their first look at an exhibition of "Warriors Tyrannosaurus" fossils returned from the United States.

The Mongolian "Warriors Tyrannosaurus" fossils had been smuggled into the United States, but they would soon become a valuable heritage of Mongolia, Tsedevdamba Oyungerel, Minister for Culture, Sports and Tourism, said at an opening ceremony.

In order to effectively protect the country's abundant dinosaur fossil resources, the government has decided to build a Mongolian dinosaur museum, with the temporary exhibition open till September, said the minister.

A large number of Mongolia's dinosaur fossils have been smuggled into Europe, North America and Asia. More than 120 pieces of them would be returned to their homeland in the near future.

A nearly complete fossil of a giant Tyrannosaurus, which was unearthed in Mongolia, was put on auction in New York on May 20 last year. The Mongolian government lodged a protest, asking the U.S. government to return it back.

A U.S. District Court in Manhattan ruled this piece of fossil must be returned to Mongolia, and it was sent back home on May 18 this year.

Mongolian dinosaur fossils are mainly distributed in the south, middle and east gobi. Since 1922, scientists have found many fossils of Cretaceous dinosaurs, including protoceratops and oviraptors.