Photo/Illutration The skeleton of Fukuiraptor is on display at the Fukui Prefectural Dinosaur Museum in Katsuyama, Fukui Prefecture, in February. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

April 17 is “Kyoryu no Hi” (Dinosaur day), which I didn't know until recently.

On this day in 1923, I learned, American explorer and naturalist Roy Chapman Andrews (1884-1960) set out on an expedition to the Gobi Desert.

Blame it on my ignorance, but the name didn't ring a bell then.

"We specialize in dinosaurs, but even we weren't aware of this anniversary day until a few years ago," said Yoshikazu Noda, 61, a researcher at the Fukui Prefectural Dinosaur Museum.

A pioneer fossil hunter, Andrews was apparently one of the role models of the eponymous protagonist of the "Indiana Jones" series of films.

He excavated numerous dinosaur fossil sites, uncovering skulls and eggs, and eventually became the director of the American Museum of Natural History in New York city.

In Fukui Prefecture, dinosaur fossil excavation took off a big way in summer 1982 after a local schoolgirl came across a fossil in neighboring Ishikawa Prefecture. Her find was determined to be a tooth of a carnivorous dinosaur from the Cretaceous period, propelling the teenager to fame.

In the ensuing years, geological stratum in Katsuyama, Fukui Prefecture, yielded copious fossils, some of which were given names such as Fukuiraptor and Fukuisaurus. The locals could not be more proud.

Until about a decade ago, it was generally assumed that few dinosaur fossils could be found in Japan.

But during my visit at the museum, I learned that the prevailing theory today is that the Japanese archipelago was once contiguous with the Asian continent.

Strolling around the city of Katsuyama, I tried to imagine hordes of dinosaurs, large and small, freely roaming this land eons before the birth of the human race.

But even in the United States, China and Thailand that boast advanced dinosaur research, April 17 is said to be hardly recognized as an anniversary day.

That being the case, why don't we in Japan propose to the world some other day on which to celebrate dinosaurs?

--The Asahi Shimbun, April 17

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.