Comptes Rendus Palevol 23 (2)

Diane Scott, who dedicated her entire career to the preparation and illustration of vertebrate fossils in the laboratory of Robert R. Reisz, recently retired. She trained several generations of students (including two of the editors of this booklet) and post-docs in these techniques, in which she excelled. Her rigorous approach, particularly to cranial reconstruction, enabled her to play an active role in research and to co-author 43 scientific articles, although her illustrations also appear in many other publications. The compilation of five research articles, the biography and the editorial, all by researchers who personally knew Diane, emphasize the importance of scientific illustrations in paleontology. These articles describe not only the Permo-Carboniferous stegocephalians that Diane specialized in, but also an Upper Permian gorgonopsian, Mesozoic dinosaurs, and even a great white shark tooth still embedded in the calcaneum of the Pliocene seal it ate. This tribute to Diane Scott also highlights the important scientific contribution of preparators and illustrators.