Iguanodon Planter
Description
In 1825, English paleontologist Gideon Mantell described an unusual set of fossil teeth resembling those of a modern iguana that had been inflated to terrifying proportions. Aptly named Iguanodon (literally ‘Iguana tooth’), these teeth, along with more complete remains discovered about a decade later, would inform one of the first attempts at reconstructing the ancient past. Along with Megalosaurus and Hyaelosaurus, Iguanodon was one of the very first life-size dinosaur models ever shown to an awestruck public in 1854 at the newly christened Crystal Palace park in London. Envisioned by sculptor Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkings as massively overgrown lizard-like beasts, these creations of brick, mortar, and rebar would go on to spark a widespread public and scientific interest in discovering a lost age of colossal reptiles. Although our understanding of both dinosaurs and the technology we use to bring them back to life has evolved greatly since then, we still have the work of the earliest paleontologists, paleoartists, and many other fossil workers to thank for revealing the first glimpses of the ancient past. This decorative planter commemorates the start of two centuries of paleontology with Iguandon’s visage emerging from stone, both as it was first envisioned in the 1800’s and as modern science (and a little artistic license) suggests this thumb-spike-toting, Iguana-toothed herbivore might have really looked. Project 2 featured in "3D Printing for Museum Exhibits - a quick-start guide" which I produced for my final product in the Museum Studies MA program at the University of Kansas, in conjunction with the KU Museum of Natural History. The guide can be found under the files tab.
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