Opened in 2000 as part of the $23-million Thanksgiving Point museum
complex in Lehi, Utah, the Museum of Ancient Life contains sixty mounted
dinosaur specimens and proclaims itself the largest dinosaur museum in
the world.
The collection includes two Tyrannosaurus Rex skeletons, the world's
most complete Stegosaurus skeleton, ultra-rare specimens of
Cerratosaurus and Gargoylasaurus, a Quetzalcoatlus with a 40-foot
wingspan, and a 120-foot-long specimen of the largest dinosaur ever
discovered, the Supersaurus. In addition to its many hands-on exhibits,
the museum is also known for its lovely, if slightly kitschy, dioramas
and miniature dinosaur tableaus.
The brainchild of Cliff Miles—the man who named the Gargoyleosaurus,
Hesperosaurus, and Minotaurasaurus and was the adviser for the Jurassic Park
films—the facility also features an IMAX 3D theater and a working
paleontological laboratory, where visitors can observe preservation work
up-close.
