Carnegie Museum of Natural History
One of the Four Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh
Handmade by Ugandan artisans, these Dippy plushes are a product through the organization Project Have Hope. Project Have Hope aims to empower Ugandan artists through the sale of their crafts. Each purchase supports the mission of educating women and children, providing business opportunities to empower women and give them the courage to dream. You can purchase your own at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History gift store. Visit www.projecthavehope.org for more information and how you can help.
In January, Carnegie Museum of Natural History paleontologist Dr. Matt Lamanna talked from the Big Bone Room of Carnegie Museum of Natural History on Facebook Live and answered questions from viewers and schools across the country. Matt received more than 75 questions! Here’s one he wasn’t able to answer live. New episodes featuring different scientists are live streamed every month. Follow us on Facebook!
How old is the Diplodocus in our museum?
“Our Diplodocus carnegii fossils are about 150 million years old. If you’re asking how old the animals were when they died, unfortunately we don’t know that (at least for the moment).”
Dippy’s story began with his namesake — Andrew Carnegie. Carnegie was a philanthropist who made his fortune in Pittsburgh’s steel industry and founded Carnegie Museum of Natural History. Inspired by his ardent belief in evolution, Carnegie financed an expedition to find a dinosaur for Pittsburgh.
Museum director William J. Holland organized the expedition to the American west in 1899. After three months of searching, a team member discovered a huge toe bone at Sheep Creek, Wyoming. Further digging led to the discovery of a massive, long neck dinosaur later identified as a sauropod.
The news broke, and before he was even excavated, Dippy was a celebrity. Visitors thronged to the site in Wyoming, which was dubbed “Camp Carnegie.” After the sufficient collection of Dippy’s bones, boxes were constructed, and the bones were sent back to Pittsburgh in 130 crates. Dippy took up a whole boxcar on his trip back to Pittsburgh!
This is the first in a three-part blog series about Diplodocus carnegii, aka Dippy. We are celebrating all things Dippy as we launch our new logo featuring his silhouette. Share your own Dippy photos and stories using #newdippylogo.
In 1898, Andrew Carnegie sent this newspaper clipping to Carnegie Museum of Natural History Director Dr. William J. Holland with a $10,000 check and a note that read, “buy this for Pittsburgh.”
T-Rex teeth in Dinosaurs in their Time at Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh.
(Photo by Josh Franzos)
Stegosaurus was as big as a bull elephant and the largest known plated dinosaur.
(Photo by Josh Franzos)
