In collaboration with the Natural History Museum in London, Factum Arte created Fern, a self-supporting bronze replica of the iconic Diplodocus carnegii 20th-century plaster cast skeleton, now installed in the new and refurbished museum gardens as part of the Urban Nature Project. Fern the Diplodocus and the Jurassic Garden is supported by Kusuma Trust.

To carry out one of the largest projects to date in terms of scale and overall complexity, Factum closely worked with the team at the Natural History Museum, Fademesa Foundry in Madrid and Structure Workshop to create this massive 4x21m weatherproof bronze sculpture over the course of 3 years. Not taking in account the curves of its tail and neck, Fern is a 25m Diplodocus.

Also on display in the Natural History Museum’s gardens is a bronze cast of a Hypsilophodon foxii. Factum Arte’s 3D sculptors worked with the Museum's Professor Paul Barrett on the recreation of a new, more accurate skull that significantly improves upon the existing skull recreation on the skeleton in the museum’s collection.

In 2021, the team of engineers, architects and 3D modellers at Factum Arte were provided individual high-resolution 3D data of each bone of Dippy, the original plaster cast. Counting the skull and jaw as one, the total amounted to 292 bones. 

Working in close collaboration with palaeontologist Paul Barrett, the team meticulously aligned the bones and processed the data over several weeks to ensure anatomical accuracy and integrity. The objective was to achieve a pose that was not only natural and dynamic but also anatomically precise, capable of supporting itself without visible structures such as beams or external tension rods. Once the final pose model was established, it underwent rigorous structural analysis by Structure Workshop to ensure its stability and longevity. 

The first fabrication tests in January 2022 showed that, to achieve self-support, it was necessary to fabricate each structural bone in two halves - both in its 3D print and bronze cast form. This allowed for a rather complex, but at the same time more accurate and precise, fabrication process. It was also necessary to ensure maximum contact between the flat sections of the vertebrae facing each other (referred to as 'bearing faces') and the cartilage disks nestled between them. To ascertain the bones’ capacity to withstand the requisite weight and pressure of the tensioning, compression tests were conducted at the Instituto de Ciencias de la Construcción Eduardo Torroja. 

The 3D prints of 114 non-structural bones, spanning from the skull to the tail's final segment, underwent casting in aluminium-bronze alloy at Madrid-based foundry Fademesa. Either sand cast or wax cast methods were employed depending on size.

Initial mounting tests provided an invaluable opportunity for both the Factum Arte and NHM teams to analyse the alignment of the bones. These tests unveiled misalignments, some of which were inherent in the original dinosaur cast, prompting corrections to uphold anatomical precision. 

The engineering details of each structural bone, such as thickness, bearing faces and internal gussets, were studied separately in the 3D prints before the moulding process began both at Fademesa and Factum Arte. Each vertebra needed a complex 4-part mould that required thorough checking and retouching before casting,

Factum Arte conducted 3D scans of every bone post-production, both as a crucial quality control measure and support for the milling process that perfected the bearing faces at both ends of each structural vertebra. In order to achieve the tension system securing the bones in their intended position, it was necessary to perfectly control the flatness and angle of each side of the vertebrae.

Out of all the 292 bones, the ilium was deemed the most difficult to cast, both in terms of process and resources required to achieve the final result. A special castable resin was ordered to 3D print the model and place it directly in the muffler for casting, and a new furnace was necessary to melt the required amount of metal for a single pouring. After one failed attempt, it was decided to break down the ilium bone into smaller sections and then weld them together. 

During 3 months of careful section-by-section mounting, Fern slowly took shape in Fademesa's workshop under amazed eyes and bated breath. After crating, the finished bronze cast was transported to London by Mtec Fine Art and installed in the new gardens in late April 2024 under the supervision of the Museum and Factum Arte’s team, together with Mtec for handling and fitting and Walter Lilly & Co. Ltd for site construction and safety.

The team at Factum Arte
Carlos Alonso, Nicolas Béliard, Javier Botella, Cristian Cabrera, Raúl Candil, Francesco Cigognetti, Sol Costales, Dylan Dubson, Daniel Fabris, Carmen Gª Figueras, Giulia Fornaciari, Manuel Franquelo, Eduardo Garcia, Jordi Garcia, Irene Gaumé, Esperanza Gonzalez, Alvaro Gonzalo, Nuria Goytre, Carolina Gris, Miguel Hernando, Alonso Jurado, Imran Khan, Jonty Lister, Adam Lowe, Matt Marshall, Victoria Matatagui, Pedro Miró, Guillermo Mugica, Oscar Parasiego, Voula Paraskevi Natsi, Natalia Perez Buesa, Ricardo Renedo, René Sabina Servisi, Pedro Salafranca, Ferdinand Saumarez Smith, Oak Taylor-Smith, Charlie Westgarth

The team at Fademesa
Alberto Arellano, Juan Carreño, Valentin Demeter, Antonio de la Hiz, Petru Duraban, Julian Francisco Gonzalez, Jorge Martin, Pedro Martinez, Alvaro Menor Barbero, Artyom Misakyan, Arkady Nikighosyan, Jorge Nuevo, Alicia Sanchez, Ramiro Sanchez, Luis Angel Verdejo, Jose Luis Viera

The team at Structure Workshop
Alastair Bernard, Max Clayton, Peter Laidler

The CNC milling team at Diseño, Caldereria, Ingenieria, DCI
Alberto Garcia Herranz, Alvaro Garcia López, Isidoro Garcia Mora