Impress Your Friends with Cool Facts about Dippy the Dino

Dippy is a Pittsburgh landmark, complete with its own Facebook page and Twitter account.

photo by wally gobetz via flickr creative commons

Most Pittsburghers are familiar with Dippy, the 3,000-pound, 22-foot-tall, 84-foot-long dinosaur sculpture that stands adjacent to the entrances of the Carnegie Music Hall and Carnegie Museum of Natural History.

Dippy's history, however, might not be as well-known, so we decided to break it down:
 

Timeline

• 1898 Andrew Carnegie reads that “the most colossal animal ever on Earth” has been discovered in Wyoming. He decides to acquire it.
• 1899 It turns out that the find was a bit oversold: William Reed, the discoverer, had found one bone. The team continues to dig, expanding its coverage area.
• 1905 At the request of King Edward VII, Carnegie makes a gift of a replica of Dippy to the British Museum of Natural History in London.
• 1907 To make room for the original Dippy’s debut, the Carnegie Institute is expanded.
• 1910 Carnegie defends how Dippy’s skeleton is presented, with legs behind, as opposed to off to the side (like a horse instead of a lizard). He was correct.
• 1999 The statue of Dippy is unveiled outside the Carnegie Museums complex.
• 2015 Dippy gets a new coat of paint. He’s never been vandalized.

Facts

• The statue standing guard in front of the Carnegie Museums complex depicts Diplodocus carnegii — a species whose discovery was funded by Andrew Carnegie himself.
• The original Dippy skeleton is on display inside the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.
• More than a dozen replicas of Dippy exist worldwide.
• It took 130 crates to ship Dippy east to Pittsburgh.

— Margaret J. Krauss

#Style: Time to dress for success

This week, you can exchange your black and gold for something a little more fashionable.

Wednesday is the kickoff of Style Week Pittsburgh, a parade celebrating all things fashion and flair. This sassy sideshow is in its third iteration here in the 'Burgh, and it’ll be punctuated by events you’ll want to check out. On top of that, a portion of Style Week’s net proceeds will go to benefit Dress for Success Pittsburgh, so you can feel good while you look good.

It all starts on Wednesday at 6 p.m. at the Kelly-Strayhorn Theater with an opening event featuring fashion shows, fashion trucks, a beauty and grooming bar, a DJ and cocktails. On Thursday, join your fellow fashionistas at the Style Awards at Perlé to honor local talent in fashion and beauty.

For the weekend, Pinstripes & Pearls “Dress for Success Fashion Show” Luxe is taking place at the East Liberty Showroom on Friday to flaunt fashion and style trends from some Pittsburgh-based boutiques. On Saturday, the Fashion Block Pop Up Marketplace is taking over Market Square, with fashion trucks and local vendors, to boot. Finally, there’ll be a Fashion Show & Brunch on Sunday, with the location to be determined.

Wadria Taylor, the event’s founder and director, says in a statement that Style Week has “nothing but greatness to offer.”

Greatness — and great clothes.

— Elaina Zachos