Dippy the Diplodocus

© CSG CIC Glasgow Museums Collection

Dippy, a replica of a diplodocus, has arrived in Kelvingrove. The skeleton of Dippy was dug up in Wyoming, USA in 1899. The original skeleton is in Andrew Carnegie’s Museum in Pittsburgh USA because the excavation was funded by Andrew Carnegie. In his honour, the dinosaur is named I diplodocuscarnegii. Dippy is 70 feet long and has 292 bones.

 King Edward VII visited Carnegie at Skibo Castle and saw a drawing of the reconstructed skeleton. He asked Carnegie if he could make a cast for the British Museum. Carnegie obliged and donated a plaster cast which was unveiled in 1905. It has remained in the Natural History Museum since then. A decision was made to put another exhibit in the central hall of the museum and to send Dippy on a tour of the United Kingdom. Glasgow is its fourth stop. It has to travel with a team of dedicated technicians to ensure that it is properly installed. It will be here until May 2019.

Already there have been crowds of people eager to see him/her on the only visit to Scotland- 50,000 visitors in the first fortnight.

Visit to Gifts for the Gods: Animal Mummies Revealed

On 19^th August,Friends visited the current exhibition at Kelvingrove under the expert guidance of Dr Campbell Price from the University of Manchester. Dr Price, who has excavated at Saqqara , told of the thousands of animal mummies prepared by ancient Egyptians as votive offerings to their gods Examples were on display with explanations of their use and fate. There was a discovery zone to help understand the process of mummification. This well presented exhibition closes on 4^th September and is well worth a visit.

Liz Dent and Dr Price before a poster about Saqqara