The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History announced that it has obtained a Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton from the Museum of the Rockies. It will be transported from Bozeman and is expected to arrive in Washington, D.C. on April 15.

The T. rex skeleton will be the centerpiece of the Smithsonian's new 31,000-square-foot national fossil hall, which is set to open in 2019. In anticipation of the T. rex's arrival, the museum unveiled "Tyrannosaurus rex: Say Hello to the Nation's T.rex!" January 16, a display featuring a cast of the incoming dinosaur's skull that will be on view in the Constitution Avenue lobby.

This rare fossil was found in 1988 by Kathy Wankel, a rancher from Angela, MT, on federal land near the Fort Peck Reservoir in eastern Montana. The T. rex was excavated in 1989-90 by a team led by paleontologist Jack Horner. The skeleton is one of the most complete T. rex specimens ever discovered, with 80-85% of the skeleton recovered. The T. rex was originally scheduled to arrive in October 2013 for the National Park Service's National Fossil Day on the National Mall. Those plans were cancelled during the U.S. federal government shutdown.

 

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