A fossil hunter recently discovered the biggest whale fossil ever found in Italy. It was found in the vineyards of Castello Banfi, one of the country's finest vineyards located in the northern grape-growing area of Tuscany. The five million-year-old fossil skeleton is 10 meters (33 feet) in length and appears to be complete.
"A group of palaeontologists were digging in January in the Castello Banfi vineyards and found a whale's vertebra," said a spokesperson for Winenews, a wine promotion agency.
This was not the first such find for this area: an ancient dolphin's skeleton was found several years ago in the same area near Penza, said the spokeswoman of the winery, Daniela Vitodo. According to paleontologists, Tuscany was under water millions of years ago and Castello Banfi was part of the sea bed.
"It reminds us "that this rich soil is composed of nutrients and minerals deposited millions of years ago," said the The vineyard owner, Cristina Mariani. "It's that special earth that gives complexity to our wines."
Sources
BBC News (quotes)
Sofia News (quotes)
News 24 (quotes)
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Let us hope the discovery turns out to be a bold, fruity vintage, with a sharp nose, and is totally rubusto... in other words a whale of a find!
A friend sent this to me, pointing out the statement suggesting that the whale had made the ground fertile. His conclusion is that it must have been a sperm whale.
Bob
This sounds like a great marketing opportunity. "Aged 5 million years for perfect ripeness"