YMMV / Crystal Palace Dinosaurs

• Awesome Art: Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins really did put a lot of effort into making most of the creatures as lifelike and detailed as possible. One of the Iguanodons is even designed to have its flesh seem to sag under weight as it sites down.
• Common Knowledge:
  • The dinosaurs are said to have been sculpted under the supervision of the time's leading paleontologist Richard Owen, who coined the word 'dinosaur'.... But post-2010s research shows Owen was barely involved with the project beyond lending it his name. In fact Hawkins' team complained about how little guidance Owen had given them.
  • The now legendary celebration within the iguanodon model was also less whimsical than reported: most of the party took place alongside regular tables, with only a few guests (including Owen himself, who may have been the source of the story) climbing into the dinosaur on occasion to drink or sing. The dinosaur was actually a clay model surrounded by moulding material, not the actual statue that was eventually put on display. This is a detail most illustrations neglect because they obscure the sculpture's form.
• Narm:
  • The Megalosaurus' imposing form is a bit undercut by it looking up and the way its mouth is sculpted to be grinning.
  • The models may have a fearsome stature and undeniable artistic and scientific significance, but due to their outdated nature they've been the butt of so many jokes and ridicule over the decades that their history is somewhat tragi-comedic. Especially once you realize they've been used as children's playground attractions, with an Iguanodon having a strategically placed hole on its rear for kids to climb in.