15 Illustrations By Jay Matterne That Bring Prehistoric Life To Light

Ancient worlds filled with towering beasts and forgotten places come to life through the strokes of a master artist. Jay Matternes captures prehistoric creatures with such precision that they feel as if they could step off the canvas. His work blends science and imagination in breathtaking detail. Here are 15 of his illustrations that unveil lost eras in ways few have ever seen.

Short-Faced Bear (Arctodus Simus)

Matternes’ depiction of the short-faced bear, one of the largest terrestrial carnivores of the Ice Age, highlights its impressive size and unique adaptations. He carefully reconstructed the bear’s elongated limbs and muscular frame. The painting’s background is a cold, open environment, aligning with fossil evidence that suggests it thrived in Pleistocene North America.

Uintatherium

The illustration of Uintatherium presents a striking image of this Eocene herbivore, known for its unusual skull adorned with six bony protrusions. Matternes’ rendering of the creature’s tusk-like canines and thick body structure emphasizes its evolutionary path. We see Uintatherium in a lush, ancient landscape, surrounded by foliage that suggests its diet consisted of leaves and soft vegetation. 

Poebrotherium

This painting of Poebrotherium, an early relative of modern camels, highlights its elegant, deer-like stature. It showcases the slender legs and long neck that helped this animal browse for vegetation in prehistoric grasslands. The artist carefully reconstructs the soft, fur-covered features of Poebrotherium to show its evolutionary transition from small, forest-dwelling ancestors to more enormous, desert-adapted camels.

Synthetoceras

Matternes’ depiction of Synthetoceras brings to life one of the most unusual ancient–ungulates from the Miocene epoch. Measuring approximately 2 meters long, Synthetoceras was the most prominent member of the protoceratid family. Its most distinctive feature was a Y-shaped nasal horn found only in males, likely used in territorial disputes or mating displays.

Daeodon

Daeodon was a bison-sized member of the entelodont family, an extinct group of omnivorous mammals that lived from the late Oligocene to the early Miocene. Jay shows its bulky frame, elongated skull, and jaws filled with large, crushing teeth. It also highlights the animal’s high shoulders, supported by a long vertebral column, which gives it an intimidating presence.

Pliocene Scene

Pliocene Scene transports viewers to a lakeside setting in Idaho over three million years ago. The artwork shows early horses, such as the Hagerman Horse, a possible pelican-like bird resting near lily pads, and mastodons—elephant-like creatures with distinctively curved tusks—bathing in the background. This composition offers a window into the diverse fauna of the Pliocene epoch.

Ice Age Alaska Mural

Completed in 1975, this expansive artwork portrays a dynamic late Pleistocene landscape and depicts a diverse variety of megafauna that once inhabited the region. Prominently displayed are woolly mammoths, illustrated with their characteristic long tusks and shaggy coats, traversing the icy terrain. Alongside them are saber-toothed cats, mastodons, and giant ground sloths intricately rendered.

Australopithecus Afarensis

Matternes offers a lifelike portrayal of one of our early hominin ancestors in this reconstruction. He builds upon fossilized skeletal remains through meticulous layering techniques by adding muscles, cartilage, and skin. This method provides invaluable insights into the physical characteristics and possible behaviors of A. afarensis and enhances our understanding of human evolution.

Woolly Mammoth

Research indicates that woolly mammoths likely had social structures similar to present-day elephants. Herds comprised females and young, led by experienced matriarchs, while males roamed alone or in bachelor groups. This social dynamic is reflected in Matternes’ work, where he portrays mammoths in familial groupings.

Smilodon (Saber-Toothed Cat)

One of Jay’s notable illustrations is that of the Smilodon, commonly known as the saber-toothed cat. A prehistoric predator, the animal is often mischaracterized as a tiger but more accurately described as a saber-toothed cat. In this depiction, the animal’s formidable presence is emphasized by its protruded upper canines, robust musculature, and distinctive facial features.

Megaloceros (Irish Elk)

Also called the Irish Elk, the Megaloceros had expansive antlers. It roamed Eurasia during the Late Pleistocene and had some of the largest antlers ever recorded, spanning up to 12 feet from tip to tip. Jay situated the Megaloceros within its natural habitat to foster a deeper appreciation of the biodiversity of our planet’s past.

Paraceratherium

The Paraceratherium, cited as the largest land mammal ever, lived approximately 30 to 16.6 million years ago. This hornless rhinoceros measured about 18 feet at the shoulder, stretched over 26 feet, and weighed about 15 to 30 tons—surpassing the weight of modern elephants. Its elongated neck and limbs suggest it was adapted to browsing treetops.

Thylacosmilus

Despite its striking resemblance to placental saber-toothed cats like Smilodon, Thylacosmilus was not closely related to them. It possessed extended, flattened upper canines that extended beyond its lower jaw. Matternes’ artwork effectively captures these distinctive features and shows the prehistoric ecosystems of South America.

Glyptodon

This extinct armored mammal lived during the Pleistocene epoch and is often compared to a giant armadillo due to its dome-shaped shell. Jay captures its rigid, bony carapace made of fused osteoderms, which protect it from predators. The artist also showed Glyptodon’s squat limbs adapted to support its heavy body and potentially dig up food.

Homo Erectus

This scene captures a moment where Homo erectus individuals are learning to utilize fire for warmth, protection, and cooking. Their anatomy exhibited modern human-like body proportions, with longer legs and shorter arms relative to the torso. This species is also credited with creating Acheulean tools—sophisticated stone implements likely used for butchering meat and processing plants.