The giant makes its grand entrance
Singapore is hosting a creature that dwarfs most others in the natural world. The Patagotitan mayorum, the largest known dinosaur, stands about 6 metres tall and would have stretched across three badminton courts in life. Today, it dominates a new exhibition, Dinosaurs | Extinctions | Us, at Science Centre Singapore, a joint presentation with the NUS Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM). Visitors will walk through an expansive narrative that charts the rise and fall of prehistoric life, using both rare fossils and life-size models to tell a story that spans hundreds of millions of years.
From Argentina to Singapore: the journey of a giant
The Patagotitan mayorum traces its roots to Patagonia, in what is now Argentina. The discovery began with a farmer finding a bone sticking from the ground in 2010, followed by digs from 2012 to 2015 that yielded more than 200 fossils, including 130 sauropod bones. In 2017, scientists christened the new genus with the species mayorum, honoring Patagonia and the Mayo family who owned the La Flecha ranch where the bones were found. Paleontologists estimate that seven individual specimens were represented in the material, allowing researchers to reconstruct roughly 70 per cent of the skeleton—an unusually complete recovery for a dinosaur discovery. The rest was inferred by comparing with related giants such as Titanosaurus to fill in the gaps.
Three days of assembly in a ‘Big lego’ act
The Singapore display is a cast of the original Patagotitan mayorum fossils, created by 3D-scanning the bones and then sculpting them in resin, fiberglass, foam and metal. The result is a faithful, high-fidelity replica, painted to mimic the mineral hues of the specimen’s sediment. The idea of a giant “lego” is apt: assembling the bones into a lifelike pose took three days and required a small team—five workers and three technicians. The fossil pieces, some weighing hundreds of kilograms, traveled in two shipping containers from Argentina before the final assembly in Singapore. Although more than 30 original bones will be on display, the bones themselves are fragile; the femur alone weighs about 650 kilograms, and the full animal would have weighed around 57 tonnes. The cast, by comparison, is about 2.5 tonnes and is designed to be safely displayed without compromising the originals.
A bold, integrated show: Dinosaurs | Extinctions | Us
Curated through a partnership that blends two exhibitions—Dinosaurs Of Patagonia from Argentina’s Museo Paleontologico Egidio Feruglio and Six Extinctions by Gondwana Studios—the Singapore installation marks the first time these collections have been fused into one cohesive experience. Spanning roughly 3,000 square metres, it’s the Science Centre’s largest dinosaur showcase to date. The display includes 33 fossils and 60 full-scale models arranged to guide visitors from primitive life in the Ordovician through the Devonian and into the Mesozoic, ending with the Holocene and Anthropocene eras. Iconic predators such as Scotty, a well-known T. rex, and a Tyrannotitan stand facing off against Patagotitan mayorum, illustrating the dramatic shifts in ecosystem dynamics and competition across eras.
Local context and a global message
To ground the science in today’s world, the exhibition also highlights biodiversity and extinction. Seven taxidermied specimens from LKCNHM—locally extinct species such as the cream-coloured giant squirrel and the Christmas Island Pipistrelle—provide a poignant reminder that extinction still happens, even as science advances. LKCNHM is celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2025, and collaborations like this underscore the museum’s commitment to global-scale partnerships and up-to-date palaeontological knowledge. The show’s organizers emphasize that the project is not only about marveling at a giant fossil; it’s about understanding how life evolves, how long it takes for large structural features to develop, and why some lineages vanish abruptly.
What visitors can expect: learning through doing
Science Centre Singapore is known for translating complex science into engaging experiences for all ages. In this exhibition, that ethos is front and center: a hands-on dig pit lets children step into the shoes of palaeontologists and uncover “fossils” buried in a sand-like substrate, while others can try their hand at designing a dinosaur’s body plan and inferring muscle and skin color from the clues of anatomy. A two-hour-to-half-day visit is recommended to absorb the full arc of the journey, from ancient oceans and forests to today’s conservation challenges.
Practical notes for visitors
The show opens on October 11 and runs for an open-ended period, with the teams aiming to keep the material fresh by rotating displays and inviting ongoing research-driven updates. Delays caused by weather disruptions have been part of the logistics, but the collaboration endures as a symbol of international scientific exchange and public education. If you’ve ever wondered how scientists piece together a dinosaur’s story from bones, or how a monumental fossil becomes a life-sized model in a museum, this exhibition offers a compelling answer—and a chance to reflect on our own era’s stewardship of Earth’s biodiversity.
Two hours to be inspired, perhaps more to act
As Daniel Tan, Science Centre Singapore’s senior director of exhibitions and galleries, notes, the aim is to leave visitors with a sense of responsibility toward the planet’s living treasures. The giant Patagotitan mayorum isn’t just a spectacle; it’s a bridge to understanding extinction, evolution and the fragile balance that sustains life on Earth. For families, students, and curious minds alike, the experience promises to be big, informative and unforgettable.
