From Johnny Thunder to Jurassic World, LEGO has a long history of sets featuring dinosaurs and other prehistoric life, but as much fun as it can be to pose a mighty molded Spinosaurus, we’re partial to brick-built dinos, like a Creator 3-in-1 T.Rex or the recent Mosasaurus Boat Mission. Of course, our favorite creatures of all are original creations from the LEGO building community, like those that were just unearthed as part of the Bones to Brick collaboration. Seven talented builders contributed an ancient creature in their own style, and we’re excited to share the full collaboration. These builders are also all veterans of the BioCup, the annual competition that also kicks off this month, so I’m sure we’ll be seeing more from this crew very soon!

J6Crash presents Ankylosaurus magniventris, an armored dinosaur of the late Cretaceous. Sand blue and black bricks make a pleasing combo, and the technique of laying claw elements flat to create ridges along the back is brilliant.

Benjamin Anderson is next up with Dimetrodon limbatus, a creature of the Cisuralian period, some 40 million years before dinosaurs showed up. There’s a lot to love about Benjamin’s creation, but I’m smitten by the spine sail  with a colorful gradient created from alternating teeth.

Matt Goldberg goes all the way back to the Cambrian era for inspiration and offers this
Anomalocaris canadensis. Believe it or not, paleontologists believe this marine arthropod cutie, with nary a tooth or claw, was the apex predator of its time. Matt draws on an interesting mix of plant parts for this jumbo-sized shrimp ancestor.

Cornbuilder excels at building cute little guys (like Moo Deng, remember him? Cornbuilder shared instructions to make your own!) and was also drawn to the Anomalocaris. Instead of leaves, Cornbuilder’s version propels itself with oars. The front appendages are especially effective with minifig hands clipped in a row. The Paleozoic landscaping is a nice touch too.

Daniel Olvera fishes up the Dunkleosteus terrelli, an armored ancestor to the shark from the Devonian period. I’m impressed by the angles Daneil found for the brick-built head that perfectly capture this Paleozoic predator’s armored head.

Cezium soars with this colorful take on Dsungaripterus weii, a pterosaur of the early Cretaceous. Paleontologists find it notable for the bony crest along the skull and beak, but I’m more impressed by the NPU like those blades with 3 bar holders for the toothy maw.

We conclude our tour with the humble Iguanodon bernissartensis as built by VelociJACKtor. Hailing from the early Cretaceous, this is only the second true dinosaur on the list. The color banding looks wonderful, with tile patterns similar to the Jurassic World Mosasaurus.

With so many bizarre and beautiful fossils just waiting to be reimagined as brick creations, it’s a pity LEGO doesn’t offer more buildable ancient beasts outside of the Jurassic franchise. But as these seven builders show us, with the right parts and a bit of imagination, any amateur LEGO paleontologist can bring fossils to life.