Meet Sophie, a stunning 5.6-metre-long stegosaurus who will greet visitors at London's Natural History Museum from 4 December. The dinosaur will join the iconic diplodocus, called Dippy, that graces the central hall.
While Dippy is made of casts taken from five different skeletons, Sophie's body contains more than 300 fossilised bones from the same animal. It is the most complete stegosaurus ever found, with only the left foreleg and the base of the tail missing.
"Stegosaurus fossil finds are rare," says Paul Barrett, lead dinosaur researcher at the museum. "Having the world's most complete example here for research means that we can begin to uncover the secrets behind the evolution and behaviour of this intriguing dinosaur species."
Over the past year, the dinosaur has been studied at the museum, which has involved laser scans of its surface and CT scans.
After its unveiling, visitors will be able to find the stegosaurus inside the museum's Exhibition Road entrance.
But if a viewing isn't enough, dinosaur lovers can,purchase a life-sized replica online for a paltry $65,000.
To find out more about the latest dinosaur discoveries, visit our dinosaur topic guide.
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