Hippopotamus Tusk
Theme : Archaeology

A tusk from a hippopotamus (hippopotamus amphibius), which was found in clay beneath Loughor Bridge. Its excavation details are unknown but it dates from the Pleistocene (Ice Age). The time we think of as the Ice Age was not always cold however. There were long periods with bitterly cold temperatures called 'Glacials', when vast areas of land were permanently covered with ice. Then the 'Interglacials' were periods with warmer temperatures , when the ice sheets melted back to the polar regions. The warm air would have encouraged plants and animals to flourish. Wales was inhabited by hippos., rhinos., and elephants. As the warmer climate deteriorated, hippos. disappeared from Europe, they can now only be found in Africa. They have been replaced by animals better suited to cooler climates. Some geologists believe that we are currently living in an 'interglacial' thereby implying that another period of 'glacial' temperatures will occur.

This Item is located at Swansea Museum in the Archaeology Gallery