Line #20 Art/CrystalPalaceDinosaurs


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/crystalpalacedinosaurs.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:Before you [[Series/WalkingWithDinosaurs Walked with Dinosaurs]], were welcomed to Franchise/JurassicPark, or found [[Literature/TheLostWorld1912 the Lost World]]...basically before most DinosaurMedia, there were these guys.]]
3
4	The Crystal Palace Dinosaurs are a series of {{sculptures}} located within Crystal Palace Park in UsefulNotes/{{London}}, England. It depicts various prehistoric life as was known in Victorian times, first opened in 1854 for The Geat Exhibition at the Crystal Palace. The scultures were all done by artist Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins, with some technical input from noted palaeontologist of the time Sir Richard Owen.
5
6	They're also well known for a tale that a dinner party was actually held in an in-progress model of the Iguanodon.[[note]]though this isn't true, as historical records state it was held at a table near it and only a few went inside.[[/note]] The sculptures are still present where the Crystal Palace once stood, and spent a long time in a rather dilapidated state. They have now been restored, and are preserved in the Crystal Palace Park.
7	----
8	!!Examples of Tropes
9	* AmphibianAtLarge: The ''Labyrinthodon'' (or more properly ''Mastodonsaurus'') are depicted as giant frogs. While it was indeed an amphibian, specifically what's called a Temnospondyl, [[ScienceMarchesOn it wasn't a frog]], and looked more like a cross between a newt and an alligator.
10	* TheArtifact: Originally there were water systems that would make water levels rise and fall and reveal the marine reptiles, particularly the mosasaur to weasel around how it wasn't well understood at the time. This no longer happens, but they're still positioned in a way that would allow them to.
11	* ArtisticLicensePaleontology: They date back to the 1850s, so of course these extinct creatures are going to have this. There's a reason the lizard-like Iguanodon with horns have become a go-to example of ScienceMarchesOn. Palaeontologist Mark Witton [[https://markwitton-com.blogspot.com/2019/04/the-science-of-crystal-palace-dinosaurs.html has an]] [[http://markwitton-com.blogspot.com/2019/05/the-science-of-crystal-palace-dinosaurs.html entire series on the]] [[http://markwitton-com.blogspot.com/2019/05/the-science-of-crystal-palace-dinosaurs_30.html specific details]] [[http://markwitton-com.blogspot.com/2019/07/the-science-of-crystal-palace-dinosaurs.html for each]] creature on his own blog, but specifics and egregious examples are listed here:
12	** The most obvious one is that all the dinosaurs are depicted as big four-legged lizards. Out of the dinosaurs present, only ''Hylaeosaurus'' even remotely resembles its real-life inspiration, at least in the sense of being a quadrupedal reptile with spiky armor.
13	** ''Dicynodon'' are depicted as shelled turtle-like creatures due to only being known from skull fragments in the 1850s. They were more akin to pigs in build and nature.
14	** The early horse ''Palaeotherium'' is depicted as being like a tapir, which it wasn't in life.
15	** Both them and the ''Megatherium'' also have trunk, which neither actually had.
16	** The pterosaurs look rather weird from today's perspective, with their long curvy necks, semi-circular wings, and scaly skin. Interestingly, they're shown resting on all fours, which is something that wouldn't come into fashion in depictions of pterosaurs until decades later.
17	* {{Irony}}: The creature that most resembles an iguana out of the creatures isn't ''Iguanodon'', but ''Hylaeosaurus'', complete with back spikes.
18	* TheMarvelousDeer: The giant extinct deer ''Megaloceros'' are quite imposing due to being closer to visitors and their size.
19	* MammothsMeanIceAge: [[WhatCouldHaveBeen Or at least would have]]: a mammoth and mastodon model were planned for the Cenozoic section of the park, but neither were made.
20	* ThePlace: The painting is named after the Crystal Palace Park in UsefulNotes/{{London}}, England, where the sculptures are located.
21	* PrehistoricMonster: Victorian England's views of prehistory as a savage time and place does leak into the designs and presentation at times.
22	* SeaMonster: Quite a few are represented, specifically ''Plesiosaurus'', ''Mosasaurus'', the crocodile relative ''Teleosaurus'', and ichthyosaurs ''Temnodontosaurus'' and ''Ichthyosaurus''.
23	* ShownTheirWork: Well, for their time at least, but a lot of research and time was given into not only all the creatures, but displays on geology and rock formations. Not all of it has aged well, needless to say.
24	* TropeMakers: For most DinosaurMedia and Palaeoart. No other works about the subject existed beforehand, at least not on the scale of it.

Context Art / CrystalPalaceDinosaurs