page_title: Dippy
section_title: Pittsburgh statue
hierarchical_section_title: Dippy / Casts / Pittsburgh statue
caption_attribution_description: English: Photo of Dippy, a statute outside the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Oakland, Pittsburgh.40°26′36.7″N 79°57′5.3″W&#xfeff; / &#xfeff;40.443528°N 79.951472°W
context_page_description: Dippy is a composite Diplodocus skeleton in Pittsburgh's Carnegie Museum of Natural History, and the holotype of the species Diplodocus carnegii. It is considered the most famous single dinosaur skeleton in the world, due to the numerous plaster casts donated by Andrew Carnegie to several major museums around the world at the beginning of the 20th century.
  The casting and distribution of the skeleton made the word dinosaur a household word; for millions of people it became the first dinosaur they had ever seen. It was also responsible for the subsequent popularity of the entire genus Diplodocus, since the skeleton has been on display in more places than any other sauropod dinosaur.
  Its discovery was catalyzed by the announcement of the excavation of a large thigh bone by William Harlow Reed near Medicine Bow, Wyoming in December 1898. On a return trip financed by Carnegie, Reed excavated Sheep Creek Quarry D in which he found the first part of Dippy's skeleton, a toe bone, on July 4, 1899. Its discovery on Independence Day, and its use in American diplomacy via Carnegie's international donations of replicas, led to its being nicknamed the "star-spangled dinosaur".
context_section_description: In 1999 a public sculpture of Dippy was unveiled on the grounds of the Carnegie Institute and Library complex in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in tribute to the 100th anniversary of the discovery of Dippy. The dark, grayish brown life-size fiberglass model weighs 3,000 pounds, stands 22 feet, and measures 84 feet in length. The sculpture was created during a nine-month process from the original fossil. Sited along Forbes Avenue near Schenley Plaza and the lawn of the University of Pittsburgh's Cathedral of Learning, Dippy stands adjacent to the entrances of the Carnegie Music Hall and the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.
  In addition to its service as a mascot for the museum, Dippy has been seen sporting the Terrible Towel of the Pittsburgh Steelers and the colors of University of Pittsburgh's athletic teams. Sometimes when it's cold out the staff dresses him up with a gigantic scarf. Dippy is a featured Pittsburgh landmark on Yinztagram.
caption: The statue
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