fossil hunter & self taught paleontologist | Mary Anning

As March ends and Women's History Month draws to a close, we celebrate the life and contribution of yet another woman of substance - Mary Anning. 

Phoyo byTommy Trenchard,Panos Pictures/Redux

This woman was arguably the greatest fossil hunter of them all - Anning’s discoveries ended up in museums, including an ichthyosaur pictured above in the Natural History Museum in London. Her findings contributed to changes in scientific thinking about prehistoric life and the history of the Earth.

Her story inspired the recent film Ammonite, in which the scientist (pictured below along the water) is portrayed by Kate Winslet.

marketing poster for the film

Mary Anning transformed Britain’s Jurassic Coast. Author Cathy Newman writes, “She was dissed and marginalized by male scientists in the nineteenth century. She found fossils, others got the credit. Not only did she find fossils, she sketched and studied them. Her work added proof that species can become extinct, helping pave the way for Darwin.”

As a Dissenter and a woman, Anning did not always receive full credit for her scientific contributions. She was not able to fully participate in the scientific community of Victorian England, male dominated and mostly Anglican. Being female, she was not eligible to join the Geological Society of London. Among the sedimentary layers of subjugation that kept Anning marginalized were those of gender, economy, and class.

Mary Anning sketch at the Museum of Natural History, London

A self-taught paleontologist, born in 1799, credit and wealth proved as elusive as the extraordinary skeletons she unearthed, including that of Britain’s first Pterodactylus—a complete fossil of a flying reptile. “She sold what she found. Her fossils are credited to the rich man who donated them to museums, rather than the poor woman that found them,” says David Tucker, director of the Lyme Regis Museum.

She died of breast cancer in 1847, underappreciated in life, Anning’s legacy now draws travelers to southwest England’s Jurassic Coast, a 95-mile span of red sandstone, shale, and chalk cliffs—comprising 185 million years of sedimentary history laid down in the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous Ages—that is Britain’s only natural UNESCO World Heritage site.

Mary Anning by B. J. Donne

As this year’s Women’s History Month draws to a close, Anning’s recognition challenges us to review and correct what was buried in the past - to honor overlooked heroes whose genius changed how we see the world. May history teach us to be more generous and appreciative of our precocious women and their contributions.