Dinosaur bones discovered in Edmonton almost 100 years ago are missing and a campaign group is desperate to return them to their rightful place.
Members of the Friends of Tatem Park are researching the history of the bones, which they believe were dug up in 1913 before the park was transformed from a gravel pit in 1937.
The mammoth list of bones includes skeletons of an 11,000-year-old elephant-like Mastodon and a 10,000-year-old Megatherium, which was like a bear and was one of the largest known land mammals known to man.
Two skulls belonging to a mystery dinosaur are also believed to have been amongst the hoard, along with milk teeth and a toe bone of a baby Mammoth and a skeleton of an African and an Indian elephant.
Heather Frost, who is a member of the friends group, came across the missing stash after internet research and has written information about the mystery bones on a notice board in the park.
Although she is relying on hear-say, she believes the bones could be hidden in a museum in Camden, and is keen for the items to be returned to the borough.
Ms Frost, who lives close to the park, believes it would be “really lovely” if the bones could be displayed in Enfield for the good of schoolchildren who may be interested to learn about the borough’s past.
She said there are rumours that people living in Edmonton may have dinosaur bones in their back gardens from when they were first discovered almost a century ago.
Councillor George Savva, who lives in Edmonton and leads the Haselbury ward, is backing the group’s campaign to source the missing dino selection.
The Labour politician said: “I think if they actually were found in the borough, they should be returned because it is associated with our land and our parks and I will support her in any way I can in her efforts.
“I have given credit to her that she found out about this and as a councillor I will support her."
He said he might start some research into the history of the bones in a bid to bring them back to the borough.
He added: “The bottom line is I will help her in whatever I can and if we find them I would like them to be returned to Enfield.”
However, museum officer Jan Metcalfe, who works at the Museum and Local Studies and Archive in The Dugdale Centre, is not convinced about Enfield’s dinosaur legacy.
She said: “I don’t know anything about dinosaur bones – we have had some mammoth bones found in Hedge Lane in 1911 but that’s the only bones we have.
"They were quite important – not in themselves; but in the sense that they became the reason why Southbury then decided they needed a museum and that is when Broomfield House became partly a museum.
“I’d love to know where they are if that’s true.”
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