Concavenator’s Collection (new 8/5/2024)

Excellent selection! I am really enjoying your extra info that you have been sharing.

Thank you!  [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] I like giving some context on the creatures as well, I find it more interesting than simply showing the figures and there’s also the possibility of learning something new! :)

I agree with Paige, your topic is full of interesting informations and it is a good one to revisit when we're searching for info about prehistoric animal figures.
You're forcing me to acquire the Deinotherium. I wanted a single Eofauna model and my choice was the straight-tusked elephant, as I got it as a gift from a forum friend and I liked it so much and as much as no other model in these last years, I decided to go for the Konobelodon. Again I was fortunate to get it as a gift from another forum friend, so I have an excellent excuse to get a third Eofauna model. I've been thinking between the Deinotherium and the Stepe Mammoth since the mamoth, despite being announced at a smaller scale, looks large enough to act with all otther models at 1:35 scale. Though, this Deinotherium is quite bizarre in the best sense, this interpretation is also quite different from all others, more graceful and less elephant like, I guess. I believe Eofauna is the most accurate scientifically. I love Walking with Beasts, maybe the most iconic episode is the one featuring the Paraceratherium but the agressive Deinotherium is also remarkable. We can watch a few scenes here.

I red somewhere that Deinotherium was not a proboscidean but belonged to a group who was looking like Proboscideans by  convergent evolution..

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] I don’t feel guilty at all for you being tempted!  

Well, for what it’s worth, I get very few non-dinosaur figures, simply a matter of group-preferences. But Eofauna are such masters at proboscideans that I thought I would want to add at least one to my collection, as a tribute to their great job. And Deinotherium is my favorite genus of extinct proboscideans, so I’m very happy with this figure and totally recommend it. The pose is absolutely lovely, it’s active yet not overly dramatic and the bent trunk and agape mouth result in an interesting look. It’s also a more gracile interpretation than others in the market. I’m sure companies like Mojo and CollectA do their research, but Eofauna members are actual researchers that have been researching on proboscideans for years and even published papers and assisted to congresses (like the International Conference of Mammoth and Their Relatives VII) so from my inexpert point of view, I tend to trust their reconstructions more.

Whether to go for the Deinotherium or the M.trogontherii, I’d say it depends on which taxon you like more/find more interesting. Also, despite the Steppe Mammoth being in 1:40 scale, it also works for a 1:35 figure, it would simply represent an average sized individual rather than the largest specimen found.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] Hmm I vaguely remember reading something like that too…but in the end IIRC the most supported idea is that it was a proboscidean after all.

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Binomial name: Diplodocus carnegii (Hatcher, 1901)
Name etymology:” Carnegie’s double beam” (Greek)
Classified as: Dinosauria -> Saurischia -> Sauropodomorpha -> Bagualosauria -> Massopoda -> Sauropodiformes -> Sauropoda -> Eusauropoda -> Neosauropoda -> Diplodocoidea -> Diplodocimorpha -> Flagellicaudata -> Diplodocidae -> Diplodocinae
Period: Late Jurassic (Kimmeridgian - Tithonian)
Fossils found in: Morrison Formation, present day USA (North America)

Company: Eofauna
Line: Figures
Sculptor: Shu-yu Hsu (probably)
Based on: CM 84 & USNM 10865
Year of release: 2022

Review:

Spoiler:

Nice adds, I'm very tempted myself by the Eofauna Diplodocus, I have only two problems with this one, finding enough money and place

I have the Qualia Lambeosaurus and I enjoy it a lot but I prefer the PNSO one because I find it so elegant and also because this is the first models I received (with the Corytho) when I came out alive from an intensive care unit and the Covid had failed to kill me So thsi model is really special to me.

I don't know what to tell about the BotM Chasmo, I'm not a fan of articulated models. Since it's your first one, could you telle more about it ?

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] oh sorry to hear you dealed with Covid, I’m so glad you recovered from it.

Yeah, the thing with the Eofauna Dippy is just how long it is. Otherwise it’s not very massive, the Carnegie version felt bigger despite being shorter.

The PNSO Lambeo is very nice too! I think it would benefit from having chunkier limbs but it’s a beautiful figure regardless.

When it comes to BotM, well, it’s more of a niche company, not everyone is fond of articulated figures. Personally, I don’t care for articulation that much (actually I would prefer if they had no articulation at all), but what attracts me of BotM is their scientific accuracy, their great sculpts and the striking paintjobs. That said, for me they’re a “last resort” kind of thing, I’m only interested in BotM figures if they represent species I’m interested in but that no else has good figures of, or if they’re significantly better than other versions of a species I’m interested in from other companies. The size (the vast majority are in 1:18 scale which is very big for most dinosaurs) and the prices (the figures are very high quality but the prices by themselves are still high) are what stop me from getting BotM figures more often.

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Binomial name: Styracosaurus albertensis (Lambe, 1913)
Name etymology: “Spiked lizard from Alberta” (Greek)
Classified as: Dinosauria -> Ornithoscelida -> Ornithischia -> Genasauria -> Neornithischia -> Marginocephalia -> Ceratopsia -> Neoceratopsia -> Coronosauria -> Ceratopsoidea -> Ceratopsidae -> Centrosaurinae
Period: Late Cretaceous (Campanian)
Fossils found in: Dinosaur Park Formation, present day Canada (North America)

Company: PNSO
Line: Prehistoric Animal Models
Sculptor: somebody from Zhao Chuang's atelier
Based on: AMNH 5372
Year of release: 2022

Review:

Spoiler:

I love this piece! TAW is far from being an extensive source of prehistoric animals but Protoceratops is the third most represented Ceratopsid on it. Pachyrhinosaurus is still far but that's a question of time. I like how some creatures are more or less popular in different eras.

Roger wrote:

I love this piece! TAW is far from being an extensive source of prehistoric animals but Protoceratops is the third most represented Ceratopsid on it. Pachyrhinosaurus is still far but that's a question of time. I like how some creatures are more or less popular in different eras.

What is TAW? And I had the impression Pachyrhinosaurus was more popular than it apparently is, truthfully I’ve seen it receive a lot of attention in recent years (especially after 2013 as a result of its appearance on WWD 3D).

And yeah it’s interesting some animals are more popular in certain periods of time, though some have what seems to be eternal fame: Tyrannosaurus, Triceratops, Allosaurus, Stegosaurus, Diplodocus…

…

So this is how my setup looks as of January 2023.

I rearranged the collection and went from a company-based display (which is how I’ve always displayed my collection) to a taxonomy group-based display (well, kind of, as you’ll see). You’ll also notice I sold some figures. I never thought I’d like to arrange my collection in such a manner because of the differences in sculpting style among the different companies (that’s why I used to display my collection by companies) but recently I’ve been thinking about giving it a try and I’m liking the result. In this case, the differences in style are compensated by anatomical similarities. My collection is now organized into 3 big rows:

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The non-dinosaur + sauropodomorph (and Herrerasauridae, when/if I get any of them) row. Uppermost shelf for non-dinosaurs (very unspecific, I know), the underneath one for diplodocoid sauropods and the lowermost one was supposed to be destined to macronarian sauropods, though I’m placing the Atlasaurus there because of its superficial resemblance to brachiosaurids. If I need it, I may leave a different shelf for earlier sauropodomorphs later on.

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The theropod row (if you ignore the wooden Triceratops puzzle at the top). The one at the top is the non-coelurosaur/early theropod shelf (again, very unspecific) which includes the early Coelophysis and the only allosauroids and megalosauroids I currently have. Beneath, there are 2 shelves for coelurosaurs, the upper one includes the non-paravians (which is almost the therizinosaur shelf lol) and the lower one the paravians (which is all Dromaeosauridae at the moment).

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Finally, the ornithischian row. This is my favorite row because all the groups featured are natural, so in that aspect, the display feels more homogenous. On top, the thyreophorans, below the ceratopsians (the shadows they project look cool  ) and at the bottom the ornithopod (I only have the Qualia Lambeosaurus so far)/prehistoric life and paleontology-themed book shelf.

That’s all for now. I have 24 figures of 9 different companies (and 24 unique species because I only collect 1 figure/genus). My collection is very modest but I’m happy with it.

Sometimes a good excuse to dust our shelves is to reorganize our coollections. It is also a good way to keep it alive. In this case you liked the result but it is always much easier when the number of figures is not mostruous as it is in some collections. I like small collections and large collections too. Each one has its positive and negative points. I enjoy your collecting concept. Maybe a good reference for collectors who only want to collect a limited number of prehistoric figures.

TAW is Toy Animal Wiki - [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
Pachyrhinosaurusmight be more popular currently but Protoceratops have been famous for a long time because of the Fighting Dinosaurs fossil.
Actually, Protoceratops is far from being an impressive creature since it is not as spectacularly ornate as most of the other relatives. It is also a very small creature. Though, this fossil gave to it a special place in Palaenthology and consequently in this hobby.

Roger wrote:

Sometimes a good excuse to dust our shelves is to reorganize our coollections. It is also a good way to keep it alive. In this case you liked the result but it is always much easier when the number of figures is not mostruous as it is in some collections. I like small collections and large collections too. Each one has its positive and negative points. I enjoy your collecting concept. Maybe a good reference for collectors who only want to collect a limited number of prehistoric figures.

TAW is Toy Animal Wiki - [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
Pachyrhinosaurusmight be more popular currently but Protoceratops have been famous for a long time because of the Fighting Dinosaurs fossil.
Actually, Protoceratops is far from being an impressive creature since it is not as spectacularly ornate as most of the other relatives. It is also a very small creature. Though, this fossil gave to it a special place in Palaenthology and consequently in this hobby.

Glad you like! Well, at some point (by late 2021, actually) I had a space issue too, I didn’t have much left. Ever since, I have decided to sell a big part (~ 62 %) of my collection and have only kept the stuff I really care about. I’m now more strict as to what stuff I buy, have slowed down my collecting pace, shifted my collecting focus to only species I’m interested in and that are known from good fossil remains, and I’m pickier about scientific accuracy, so that narrows the number of figures I’m interested in. So I don’t foresee the space issue again in quite some time.

And yeah, Protoceratops is quite important to the history of paleontology. That goes to show that even creatures that could be considered “dull” have important backgrounds.

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Binomial name: Diabloceratops eatoni (Kirkland & DeBlieux, 2010)
Name etymology: “[Jeffrey] Eaton’s devil-horned face” (Greek and Spanish)
Classified as: Dinosauria -> Ornithoscelida -> Ornithischia -> Genasauria -> Neornithischia -> Marginocephalia -> Ceratopsia -> Neoceratopsia -> Coronosauria -> Ceratopsoidea -> Ceratopsidae -> Centrosaurinae
Period: Late Cretaceous (Campanian)
Fossils found in: Wahweap Formation, present day USA (North America)

Company: Safari Ltd.
Line: Wild Safari Prehistoric World
Sculptor: Doug Watson
Year of release: 2013

Review:

Spoiler:

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Binomial name: Qianzhousaurus sinensis (Lü et al., 2014)
Name etymology: “Chinese lizard from Qianzhou” (Greek)
Classified as: Dinosauria -> Ornithoscelida -> Theropoda -> Neotheropoda -> Averostra -> Tetanurae -> Coelurosauria -> Tyrannoraptora -> Tyrannosauroidea -> Tyrannosauridae -> Tyrannosaurinae -> Alioramini
Period: Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian)
Fossils found in: Nanxiong Formation, present day China (Asia)

Company: Safari Ltd.
Line: Wild Safari Prehistoric World
Sculptor: Doug Watson
Based on: GM F10004
Year of release: 2020

Review:

Spoiler:

I think it is a big praise to Safari when you replace your PNSO by a model of the American brand. I like the way Doug made it so delicate in clear contrast to other Tyrannosaur species. Great figure!

Indeed!

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]  [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] Well, PNSO may be higher end, but I evaluate and compare each figure, and if some other company does a better job at a certain creature, I will go with that version. That sometimes happens, for example, I personally find Safari’s tyrannosaurs nicer than PNSO’s for the most part.

I have the Battat and Kinto Styracosaurus but the PNSO makes me want to empty my wallet like crazy


I'd love to know what made you choose Qianzhousaurus Safari Ltd over the PNSO?

Concavenator wrote:

Glad you like! Well, at some point (by late 2021, actually) I had a space issue too, I didn’t have much left. Ever since, I have decided to sell a big part (~ 62 %) of my collection and have only kept the stuff I really care about. I’m now more strict as to what stuff I buy, have slowed down my collecting pace, shifted my collecting focus to only species I’m interested in and that are known from good fossil remains, and I’m pickier about scientific accuracy, so that narrows the number of figures I’m interested in. So I don’t foresee the space issue again in quite some time.

Congratulations, I've been trying to do this for years but every time my collection gets smaller it ends up getting bigger.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] Those are pretty nice Styracosaurus too!

Actually, I had the PNSO Qianzhousaurus before, this Safari figure replaces it. As to why, the Safari figure gets right what the PNSO gets wrong (doesn’t have an overly elongated skull, doesn’t have oversized scales and slightly too large feet, is more slender which might be more accurate for this genus and has lips). And accuracy aside, I just find it much nicer aesthetically. So for me, it’s better in every single aspect. If some of you like Qianzhousaurus and would like to have a figure of it, I couldn’t recommend the Safari figure enough. It’s also close to a 1/4 the price of the PNSO, too! But it’s being discontinued, so I wouldn’t drag my feet.  

PNSO figures are obviously really good, but they aren’t always the best representation of a particular species on the market, sometimes other companies outdo them, Safari included.

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Binomial name: Borealopelta markmitchelli (Brown et al., 2017)
Name etymology: “Mark Mitchell’s northern shield” (Latin and Greek)
Classified as: Dinosauria -> Ornithoscelida -> Ornithischia -> Genasauria -> Thyreophora -> Ankylosauria -> Nodosauridae
Period: Early Cretaceous (Aptian)
Fossils found in: Clearwater Formation, present day Canada (North America)

Company: CollectA
Line: Standard
Sculptor: Matthias Geiger
Based on: TMP 2011.033.000
Color scheme inspired by: Borealopelta markmitchelli Brown et al., 2017 TMP 2011.033.000
Year of release: 2019

Review:

Spoiler:

That's a very nice model, I enjoy some aestetical choices on it. The PNSO is very nice too.

Roger wrote:

That's a very nice model, I enjoy some aestetical choices on it. The PNSO is very nice too.

Indeed, this animal has received some (and deserved) good attention!