Archaeopteryx lithographica (literally “ancient wing from lithographic limestone”) fossils are dated at around 150 million years old and are some of the world’s most famous fossils. Thought by many modern paleontologists to represent the oldest bird yet discovered, it was a small bird about the size of a crow. The first fossil of an Archaeopteryx lithographica was found in 1855. The fossil remains were found in sedimentary rock from the Late Jurassic period in the Solnhofen quarries in southern Germany. Interestingly enough, the fossil would not be recognized as a bird until 1970.