Home dinosaur excavation kits a hit for Tokyo company

A dinosaur excavation set sold by Coptiar Japan Co.
JAPAN (manichi) -- Home dinosaur excavation kits that let people chip away at blocks of sand and find "fossils" that they can piece together are emerging as a hit for a Tokyo company.

Tokyo-based optical equipment manufacturer Coptiar Japan Co., which entered the market of home excavation kits in January, has already received more than 500 orders for its products.

"Up until now the only type of excavations sets were either cheap or expensive," said a public relations official for the company, which has set the price of its kits at a moderate 2,940 yen including tax.

The kits feature a block of hardened sand containing dinosaur "bones." Using a hammer and chisel, users chip away at the block to uncover the bones, and then put them together to form skeletons of various dinosaurs, including the tyrannosaurus and the triceratops.

Officials are targeting fathers and children with the products, hoping they will uncover some fun family moments as well.