Assembling the Dinosaur

Date: 

Tuesday, September 17, 2019, 6:00pm

Location: 

Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA 02138

Free Lecture and Book Signing

Lukas Rieppell, David and Michelle Ebersman Assistant Professor of History, Brown University

Dinosaur fossils were first found in England, but a series of late-nineteenth-century discoveries in the American West turned the United States into a world center for vertebrate paleontology. Around the same time, the United States also emerged as an economic powerhouse of global proportions, and large, fierce, and spectacular creatures like Tyrannosaurus, Brontosaurus, and Triceratops became powerful emblems of American capitalism. Tracing the links among dinosaurs, capitalism, and culture during this era, Lukas Rieppel reveals how these giant reptiles became intertwined with commercial culture, philanthropic interests, and the popular imagination during America’s long Gilded Age.

Free event parking at the 52 Oxford Street Garage

Presented by the Harvard Museum of Natural History and the Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments.

Livestreaming:

This event will be livestreamed on the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture (HMSC) Facebook page and the HMSC website. A recording of this program will be available on the Harvard Museum of Natural History Lecture Videos page approximately three weeks after the lecture.

Accommodations accessible image

We encourage persons with disabilities to participate in programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation please contact us in advance at lectures@hmsc.harvard.edu.

About the Speaker:

Lukas Rieppel teaches the history of science, the history of capitalism, and nineteenth-century U.S. History at Brown University. His book on the history of dinosaurs and American capitalism, Assembling the Dinosaur, was recently published by Harvard University Press.