Iguanodon figure to scale with average adult male

Sizing Up Our Dinosaur Collection Part 4: What Scale is the Iguanodon (1980) from Invicta Plastics Ltd.

The fourth in an occasional series in which I explore the scale of the miniature figures in our prehistoric animal collection.

In this post, I will step you through the relatively simple process of calculating the scale of a toy dinosaur figure in relation to it's life-size counterpart using the Iguanodon figure from Invicta Plastics, Ltd. for my example.

Iguanodon (1980) figure from Invicta Plastics Ltd.

Iguanodon (1980) figure from Invicta Plastics Ltd.

Originally released in 1980, the iconic Invicta Iguanodon figure molded in mustard yellow plastic is one of the oldest miniatures in our prehistoric animal collection and one of my personal favorites.

Beautifully sculpted by the renowned paleoartist Arthur Hayward of the British Museum of Natural History, the figure's well-proportioned form is posed in a kangaroo-like stance that reflected the 'latest' scientific thinking of the early twentieth century. At that time, dinosaurs were viewed as slow-moving "tail draggers," a perspective soon challenged by the likes of paleontologist Robert Bakker, who argued they were more nimble and fleet-footed.

What I love about the figure is while Hayward's reconstruction was an outdated museum piece shortly after its release, it's also a time capsule to an earlier time illustrating the dynamic relationship between paleoart and evolving scientific understanding.

Beyond its aesthetic appeal, the Iguanodon figure holds immense historical significance as it represents one of the earliest discoveries in the world of dinosaurs. The first Iguanodon fossil specimens were discovered by Gideon Mantell and his wife on a trip in 1822.

It was the examination of these and other Iguanodon specimens, among other fossils, that inspired Richard Owen to create a new animal group, coining the name Dinosauria or Dinosaur. Later, a remarkable find in a Belgian coal mine during the Spring of 1878 produced a large cache of thirty Iguanodon specimens. These nearly complete skeletons helped shape our understanding of dinosaurs today.

On to our exercise.

Determine scale of life-size Iguanodon.

Step 1 - Determine the length of a life-size Iguanodon. This will require some research. A good place to start is Wikipedia which gives a range for the Iguanodon of between 9 and 11 meters. In our example, we will use the length of the holotype speciman which is just over 9 meters. Note: paleontologists measure length from the tip of the skull down along the curve of the vertebrae to the tip of the tail as if the bones were laid out flat on the floor in a straight line. Scale bar = 1 meter.

Invicta Iguanodon shown in hand illustrating measurement

Step 2 - Measure the length of your miniature figure from the tip of snout along the curve of the vertebrae to the tip of tail imagining a line similar to that exhibited in the life-size animal. Scale bar = 1 centimeter.

Illustration of simple scale equation

Step 3 - Now calculate the scale factor by dividing the length of the full size dinosaur by the length of the miniature figure. Using our example of the Invicta Iguanodon, 920 cm divided by 23 cm results in a scale factor of 40.

Invicta Iguanodon to scale overlayed with skeleton

So, using total body length, the Invicta Plastics Ltd 1980 Iguanodon figure is approximately 1/40th the size of the holotype specimen IRSNB 1534. This means that the life-size animal was approximately 40 times larger than the Invicta Plastics Ltd figure, giving the Iguanodon miniature a scale of 1:40 when compared to the museum specimen.

Scale sheet illustrating iguanodon size comparison to a human

A simple way to visualize how big an Iguanodon was in life is to imagine 40 identical Invicta miniatures lined up nose to tail in a straight line which would equal the life-size animal.

A photograph of an Iguanodon in the wild

An Iguanodon in the wild

Reference

Wikipedia - Iguanodon.

Osterloff, Emily "Iguanodon: the teeth that led to a dinosaur discovery".

The Natural History Museum, London

"Crystal Palace dinosaurs: Iguanodon".

Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs

"The Bernissart Iguanodons".

Institute of Natural Sciences (Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences)


Posted on 24-04-25 by Stunt Kitty Films in dinosaurs
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