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How the Triceratops Outgrew the CU Museum

Triceratops skull wrapped in plastic in Paleontology Hall
For the last 41 years, visitors have flocked to the CU Museum of Natural History to catch a glimpse of one big dinosaur specimen: the fossil skull of an ancient Triceratops ³Ù³ó²¹³Ù’s nearly the size of a Mini Cooper. On loan from the Smithsonian Institution, the beloved Triceratopsskull was recalled in 2022 to their research collection so that Smithsonian paleontologists could further study the specimen. In exchange, the Smithsonian offered the CU Museum a full-sized cast, of not just the head, but a full-scale skeleton cast of Triceratops horridus.ÌýÌýÌý

Notified of the pending arrival,Ìýand pondering how to exhibit theÌý22 foot long skeleton, museum specialists measured door openings, the size of galleries, and even created computer models to engineer how to potentially cut it apart and solder it back together. That'sÌýwhen CU paleontologistÌýDr. Jaelyn EberleÌýset to work, collaborating with a range of staff and facultyÌýsleuthing around campus to figure out where best to exhibit it. Eventually, a space accessible to the public was secured withinÌýCU’s SEEC buildingÌýon East Campus. The College of Arts and Sciences, the Provost and SEEC building personnel were instrumental in bringingÌýthisÌýfull scaleTriceratopsÌýto campus.Ìý

2024 Story on CU Boulder Today

2022 Departure Story at CU Boulder Today

triceratops skeleton being unloaded from a moving truck with mountains in the background

Full Triceratops skeleton cast being installed on East Campus in January, 2024.

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