These dinosaurs are not too old for makeover

Kirk Baird

Friday, Sept. 22, 2000 | 8:46 a.m.

A giant asteroid, global temperature cooling -- something took the dinosaurs out 65 million years ago.

But at the Las Vegas Natural History Museum it's something a little less dramatic that's killing the beasts: oxidation.

Several robotic dinos came on hard times because of exposure to the air, and began to rust and fall into disrepair.

Enter local artists Edwin Bigelow and Joseph Cartino, co-owners of Artworks Fine Art Studio in Las Vegas. The two were brought in to aid an ailing Ankylosaur -- a Talarurus, to be precise.

The Talarurus, which means "basket-tailed," a reference to the bony club at the end of its tail, was one of the first displayed in the dinosaur exhibit when the museum opened eight years ago.

Consequently, the Talarurus was not the dinosaur it used to be. Its internal motors had quit working, its tail and head no longer moved, and large holes formed over its body, Bigelow said.

"The model was made with foam rubber, which was deteriorating," he said.

In short, the 17-foot replica -- nearly life-size -- was in the worst shape of all the prehistoric creatures.

No strangers to the museum, last November Bigelow and Cartino created a baby Shonisaurus (Nevada's state fossil) and its display. They had also done some minor repair work on some of the other dinosaurs on display, such as the Triceratops.

So in the spring the museum recruited the two to work their magic on Talarurus. But this project was a little different.

At first they thought it would simply be a case of some minor repair work. Then they discovered the beast was in much worse shape than they thought.

For example, the company that created the Talarurus used a cow skull as a base for its head. Even without a degree in paleontology, the two knew that wasn't right.

So in order to make the dinosaur as accurate as possible, Bigelow and Cartino had to do research. "We're artists, but we have to know our science," Bigelow said.

They found literature scarce on the creature, other than a college-level encyclopedia and some Internet sources.

Eventually they learned Talarurus roamed the Earth 85 million years ago during the late Cretaceous period, was a herbivore, had thick, bony skin that served as protection from predators, and was squatty, looking like a reptilian tank as it walked on all fours.

They also learned that many scientists believe the dinosaur's legs were closer to its body -- like a mammal's -- than was on the model.

It wasn't much, but it was enough to work from. So with information in hand, they did sketches of the dinosaur, then made a model for approval from the museum's staff paleontologist and director.

Once the model was approved, the Talarurus was hauled out of the museum and into Bigelow and Cartino's studio, beginning what would amount to a 90 percent overhaul.

A new steel skeleton had to be created and new motors had to be inserted. Then a body was created using high-density foam and Apoxie, a two-part clay. Finally the paint was applied and the Talarurus was ready to rejoin his cousins.

The project, which was unveiled July 27, took about 3 1/2 months to complete and cost $16,000, Marilyn Gillespie, museum director, said.

But it was worth it, she said, especially for a museum known to some kids as the "Dinosaur Museum."

"Dinosaurs get the kids into the museum," Gillespie said. "While they're here, we wow them with everything else.

"I'm very pleased with (Bigelow and Cartino's) work. A lot of people don't know it's a new dinosaur. I'm gotten very good feedback."

The relationship, however, isn't over yet.

Bigelow and Cartino plan to repair the other dinosaurs as the museum's budget allows, and are in the beginning stages of creating a life-size reproduction of a prehistoric whale.

Much of this work, incidentally, is done for less than their usual fees.

"If we can get the level of these exhibits up to the world-class level, people will want to come" to the museum, Cartino said. "This will increase the donations ... eventually, it'll pay off."