Uploaded February 2024 | Updated September 2026, 11 minutes ago

---

An opalised fossil was discovered at Lightning Ridge in 1916, here's a letter from the Australian Museum to the London Museum asking for advice with a mysterious twist!

🙏 Support Curiosity Mine on Patreon: patreon.com/curiositymine
👕 T-shirts and stuff: curiositymine.com/shop

Thanks to Lost Lightning Ridge, the Lightning Ridge Historical Society and the Australian Opal Centre, Jenni Brammall, Dr. Elizabeth Smith, Leisa Carney, People Need Goals.

The letter: https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-1646440385/view

Letter narration provided by People Need Goals, check them out here: youtube.com/peopleneedgoals
instagram.com/peopleneedgoals
(and various other places)

0:00 Introduction
0:52 World History
1:56 Lightning Ridge History
3:01 Palaeontological History
3:53 The Author of the Letter
4:37 The Recipient of the Letter
5:03 The Letter
12:08 The Piltdown Skull
16:22 The Etheridge Fossil
18:55 Acknowledgments

Follow Curiosity Mine on...
📘 Facebook: facebook.com/curiositymine
✖️ Twitter: twitter.com/curiositymine
📸 Instagram: instagram.com/curiosity.mine
🧶 Threads: theeads.net/curiosity.mine
🌏 The web: curiositymine.com
🙏 Patreon: patreon.com/curiositymine

🎶 IDU theme by Russell Gawthorpe, remixed by fraxyl - fraxyl.bandcamp.com
🎶 Sea Dweller by fraxyl - fraxyl.bandcamp.com
🎶 Bendybass by Russell Gawthorpe - soundcloud.com/datazoid

Thank YOU for watching!

#lightningridge #opalisedfossil #australianmuseum