Archaeologists in France have uncovered a really old hairy fossil… no, it’s not Nicolas Sarkozy. Although, like Mr. Sarkozy, the fossil appears to be well over 50,000 years old, that is where the similarity ends, as we are talking about a near complete skeleton of a mammoth.

On a serious note, this is quite an incredible find, as most mammoth finds are discovered much further north, with Siberia being the top spot for hairy tusk bearing remains. In fact, it is believed to be only the third one found in France, and it was only by accident that it was found at all. The dig was actually looking at an ancient Roman site just east of Paris.

The archaeologists are now trying to work out how the beast died, it could have been age, accident or even hunted by Neanderthal Man… hang on, we’re back with Sarkozy again!

It is actually quite fitting that this find should be in France, as it was the brilliant French scientist and zoologist, Georges Cuvier, who proved that the wooly mammoth was in fact a distinct species from the elephant. So, there you go.

(news, world, france, mammoth)