The Nation’s T. Rex This is a statue located outside the entrance to the Museum of the Rockies
The Nation’s T. RexThis is a statue located outside the entrance to the Museum of the Rockies at Montana State University. It is a bronze replica of a Tyrannosaurus Rex fossil known as the Wankel T. Rex, after rancher Kathy Wankel who found it on Federal Lands in 1988.The Wankel T. Rex is estimated to be between 80 and 85% complete, making it about the 5th or 6th most complete skeleton known. Although it has been characterized, its exact storage location in Montana has not been widely published to protect it from potential theft.But, in 2019 the Wankel T. Rex will have a new home and a new name. The Smithsonian Institution, the 2nd-most visited museum in the world, has been trying to find add a fossil Tyrannosaur to its display for years – as of now the one displayed is a replica, like this statue. But as of 2014, an agreement was struck for the Smithsonian to begin displaying the Wankel T. Rex for a period of at least 50 years.The fossil was carefully packed in crates and trucked across the U.S. by FedEx. It was actually supposed to arrive in 2013, but the government shutdown delayed the shipping date and it was judged too hazardous to ship it by roads during winter, delaying the arrival by more than 6 months.The Smithsonian’s current dinosaur exhibit closed for renovation in 2016 and in 2019 will reopen with the Wankel T. Rex as its centerpiece. The fossil has been given a new nickname to go along with its newfound location; the “Nation’s T. Rex”.-JBBPhoto credit: Kirk Johnson / National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institutionhttp://www.natureworldnews.com/articles/6630/20140415/smithsonian-museum-welcomes-the-nations-t-rex.htmRead more:http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/local/wp/2014/04/14/the-nations-t-rex-is-en-route-to-washingtons-most-visited-museum/http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/tyrannosaurus-rex-gets-long-term-lease-at-smithsonians-natural-history-museum/2013/06/27/0ac970c8-de76-11e2-b797-cbd4cb13f9c6_story.html -- source link
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