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 that’s nearly the size of a Mini Cooper. On loan from the Smithsonian Institution, the beloved Triceratops skull 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.
Notified of the pending arrival, and pondering how to exhibit the 22 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's when CU paleontologist Dr. Jaelyn Eberle set to work, collaborating with a range of staff and faculty sleuthing around campus to figure out where best to exhibit it. Eventually, a space accessible to the public was secured within CU’s SEEC building on East Campus. The College of Arts and Sciences, the Provost and SEEC building personnel were instrumental in bringing this full scaleTriceratops to campus.
2024 Story on CU Boulder Today
2022 Departure Story at CU Boulder Today
Full Triceratops skeleton cast being installed on East Campus in January, 2024.