In 1851, an Agricultural Exhibition took place in Kursk, where many local merchants, peasants, and other producers brought their goods. In the pavilions, among wooden dishes, barrels, vegetables, fruits, jars of honey and jam, one could see teeth of an ancient shark, fragments of mammoth bones, belemnites, a piece of a prehistoric lizard's jaw, and other rarities. These finds were presented for the first time by amateur paleontologist Valerian Alexandrovich Kipryanov.

Although he was not a professional scientist, working as an engineer in the construction of roads and locks, he began to notice ancient skeletons, huge teeth, and skulls that he found at depth. Gradually, Kipryanov became so fascinated with the study of fossils that he left his job and began to study the basics of paleontology. Despite lacking deep knowledge in this science, he introduced several useful innovations, including a method for determining the age of fossil animals based on the microscopic structure of their bones.

Most of Kipryanov's time was devoted to searching for dinosaurs, mammoths, and other prehistoric creatures. Luck often accompanied him. Once, he found the bones of an ancient sea monster and, after careful study, determined that it was a new species of plesiosaur, whose bones resembled those of sperm whales. However, he sometimes made mistakes due to his lack of specialized education, confusing one skeleton with another. For example, once he discovered bones that he took to be the remains of a new crocodile, but it later turned out to be a Megalosaurus, a land animal.

Nevertheless, Kipryanov's work was highly regarded by scientists. Paleontologist Eduard Eichwald noted that he had collected one of the best collections of fossil animals in Russia. Thus, amateur paleontologists also made a significant contribution to the development of this science.