In March of 2020 The Yale Peabody Museum was closed to the public, allowing for the building of new conservation, classrooms and collection areas, and the addition of 50% more gallery space. The Yale Peabody Museum, is set to reopen in 2024 after its major renovations. The Yale University announced a $160 million gift to renovate the Peabody Museum and over the summer of 2023.The expansion provides additional space for the Peabody’s collection of 14 million objects, fossils, meteorites, and anthropological artifacts, as well as new research spaces, classrooms equipped with the latest audio-visual technology, and a new education center for K-12 students. Our Skeleton Crew had to remount and re-pose a lot of different specimens including:
The first Brontosaurs (meaning “thunder lizard”) ever discovered at the Yale Peabody Museum. The steel frame for Brontosaurus has been re-installed in the BURKE HALL OF DINOSAURS and adorned with the sauropod’s massive pelvis, leg bones, and dorsal vertebrae. Each individual fossil is supported by its own, independent armature. The look of Brontosaurus has changed dramatically since it was last on display in 2019. Its pose and posture have been updated to reflect the latest paleontological research and its tail is significantly longer.
The Archelon ischyros skeleton was also in need of refurbishing and remounting. It is considered to be the largest turtle to ever exist. This colossal sea creature bore gear-shaped bones, functioning as stomach bone plates that defended against threats from below. Interestingly, the skeleton displays a missing right lower flipper, with evidence suggesting this was due to an incident in its early life.
The Irish elk (Megaloceros giganteus) was reinstalled in a pose that brings its massive antlers, spanning nearly ten feet across, down to eye level. This charging posture will allow visitors to appreciate both the scale of its most recognizable feature and the robust neck vertebrae that supported it.
The Otisville Mastodon, which is roughly 11,000 years old and over ten feet tall, has returned to the Peabody after more than three years in Canada being cleaned, prepared, and remounted.
This was a very long project, and the final timeline of the job took over 3 full years. but in January of 2023, the new exhibitions begin to take shape as specimens and artifacts were installed into their new galleries. Our skeleton crew had to refurbish, remount and repose several of the Peabody’s historic skeletons as the museum’s building undergoes a transformative renovation. When the Peabody reopens in March 26 2024, visitors will see the fossils positioned in more dynamic and scientifically accurate poses. “I am delighted to see the Yale Peabody Museum open after undergoing a comprehensive renovation that makes it better able to serve members of the Yale community, K-12 students from our home city, and visitors from the region and beyond,” said Yale President Peter Salovey.
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Yales iconic dinosaurs get a new look
Yale Peabody to reopen march 26
Yale Peabody (Deer oh deer)
About Renovation
Youtube: Journey of the Peabody Fossils
