Famous Dinosaur Skeletons in Museums

These are the dinosaur skeletons people cross cities and oceans to stand under: record-setting T. rexes, sauropods that rise more than 40 feet and a Stegosaurus that sold for a record $44.6 million. Each photo shows a famous named mount in a museum you can visit, and each caption says what it is, where to see it and the detail most visitors miss: whether you are looking at real fossil bone, a cast, or a mix of both. Casts are not a cheat. Real bones are heavy, fragile and often needed for research, so many famous mounts are copies, and some of the most dramatic poses only work because the skeleton is lighter than stone. The test for a place here was fame plus a mount on public display. Marine reptiles, flying reptiles and other prehistoric animals that are not dinosaurs are left out.