FCPD Dino

Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs

Baxter print of the dinosaurs

History

We research information about the Dinosaurs and engage the public in the re-telling of their history. The 30+ Grade-1 listed sculptures that make up the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs are absolutely vital objects in the history of science. They were the first ever attempt to model full-scale replicas of extinct animals, especially dinosaurs, and one of the first examples of natural history-based ‘edu-tainment’. Perhaps (unfairly) best known for their inaccuracies now, they were in fact pioneering reconstructions for the mid-nineteenth century, reflecting the latest scientific knowledge and skilled artistry, as well as being visual spectacles.

We have written a short history of the Dinosaurs below and you can find out more about the individual statues here. These pages include information on the statues themselves, what we known about these species today and how palaeoartistic reconstructions have changed over time, including a wonderful set of new, up-to-date artistic interpretations. There is also increased signage at the site itself for visitors on the individual statues.

You can also find more information on our blog, for example on how the sculptures were made, the famous ‘Dinner in the Iguandon’ hosted by Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins, and the history of dinosaurs after Crystal Palace. This video also provides a nice summary of the story of the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs.

In 2022 our very own Chair of Trustees Dr Ellinor Michel and palaeontological artist and researcher Dr Mark Witton published ‘The Art and Science of the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs’, the first new book on the site in over a quarter of a century. It presents the most in-depth research this globally significant historic site has ever had, bringing together new archival sources to synthesise, re-analyse and re-compile our understanding of how the Geological Court came to be. Find out more about the new book and how to buy it.

History of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs

Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins was the sculptor responsible for the statues that today are remembered as the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs. He was a natural history artist of international reputation. His sculptures were set in a landscape designed by Joseph Paxton that also included hillside illustrations of economic geology created by Professor David Ansted. This section of the park was constructed 1853-1855 to accompany the relocation of the Crystal Palace from Hyde Park to Sydenham Hill in south London following the Great Exhibition of 1851, and has remained largely as it appeared to visitors when the park opened. The statues are the first ever attempt to interpret paleontological discoveries as full-scale, full-bodied, living animals.

Crystal Palace Park opened in June 1854. When the park opened, only some of the sculptures were complete. The Tertiary Island was least complete. During 1854-1855, Waterhouse continued towards his whole plan, but in 1855 the directors of Crystal Palace Company ordered him to stop. He had just begun a life-sized mammoth. However, the directors decided his work had already created the effect first intended. ‘More’ was not always ‘better’.

Waterhouse Hawkins often is presented as merely the craftsman who did as he was told, guided by expert palaeontologist, Richard Owen. But this does him an injustice. Waterhouse Hawkins did the intellectual, as well as the physical, work. He examined fossils firsthand. He followed the fast-moving literature. He discussed his ideas with several experts, including Owen.

He also had to make a thousand-and-one interpretive decisions. What was the texture of their skin? How did they stand? What expression was on their face? How long were their toenails? His working practice was to make scale models, then discuss these with Owen and others. His consultants didn’t always agree. Or, they hedged their bets by sticking to the facts. But a sculptor, pressed with a specific delivery date, has to decide what to do. Waterhouse Hawkins did that.

Richard Owen normally gets credit for Crystal Palace Dinosaurs largely because he authored the guide to this part of Crystal Palace Park (Richard Owen (1854) Geology and Inhabitants of the Ancient World 2013 facsimile edition). This book isn’t much, and recent research suggests Owen had very little to do even with this book’s construction. In its specifics, this guide covers the material Owen emphasised elsewhere in his professional life. It omits mention of the mammals and the geological displays. It mentions animals not represented by the statues, and the map looks nothing like the site as a visitor would have found it. In short, it’s one odd piece of work.

Although palaeoart was a well-established genre by the 1850s, the sculptures were the first attempt to understand extinct creatures in 3D, life-sized form. They were a snapshot of what mid-nineteenth century science had worked out from fossils about form, function and behaviour of extinct animals. They drew on an increasingly sophisticated understanding of anatomy, inspired by modern-day animals whose characteristics appeared to be similar to some of these ancient fossils.

With such a gargantuan task, the sculptures were meticulously designed, planned and executed. Waterhouse Hawkins began the sculptures with sketches, before creating scale models in clay, which might have been used to plan the layout. The sculptures were then constructed from bricks, tiles, cement and iron in a dedicated workshop on-site in the Crystal Palace grounds. Foundations were laid on the islands before moving the sculptures to their planned locations. Alongside the sculptures, the geological landscape had been equally meticulously planned by David Ansted, with rocks brought in from across Britain to to form the basis of the ‘walk through time’. The park finally opened to much acclaim in 1854.

The Big Picture

This June 2013 lecture by Professor Joe Cain on Crystal Palace Dinosaurs discusses how the dinosaurs fit into the larger setting of the park and the history of science. It also interprets the statues as a visitor would have done in the 1850s. This is part of UCL’s ‘Lunch Hour Lectures on tour’, series at The Museum of London. The original title was ‘Dinosaurs in Crystal Palace Park’.

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