Luke Harris

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In 1976, my father unearthed a 2.5 metre plesiosaur at 8 metres depth while digging for opal in White Cliffs, a small mining field in North West NSW. The fossil was completely opalised, and missing only the skull and smaller flipper bones. All bones were in situ and undisturbed.The fossil was encased in plaster and carefully removed. The discovery of the Plesiosaur was fairly widely covered by the media at the time.

The NSW Museum were interested in purchasing the specimen, but my father didn't consider the amount offered adequate. He began to carefully clean the specimen himself, a task that he carried out over the next eight years (while continuing to mine for gems). The plesiosaur was placed on display as a tourist attraction in White Cliffs.

After a few years he moved to the Australian Alps to mine for gold, and the plesiosaur was removed from display and placed in a safe location. There is a good chance my father will re-open the display facility at some stage. As far as I know, his is the most complete opalised plesiosaur in existence. Others were found in the late 19th Century, but were broken up for their opal content. The fossil itself is quite attractive, and I'm sure it will be a major attraction when displayed once more.

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