institution by johnhunter； a distinguished surgeon and tireless collector of medical curiosities； but had neverbeen catalogued or organized； largely because the paperwork explaining the significance ofeach had gone missing soon after hunter鈥檚 death。
owen swiftly distinguished himself with his powers of organization and deduction。 at thesame time he showed himself to be a peerless anatomist with instincts for reconstructionalmost on a par with the great cuvier in paris。 he bee such an expert on the anatomy ofanimals that he was granted first refusal on any animal that died at the london zoologicalgardens； and these he would invariably have delivered to his house for examination。 once hiswife returned home to find a freshly deceased rhinoceros filling the front hallway。 he quicklybecame a leading expert on all kinds of animals living and extinct鈥攆rom platypuses；echidnas； and other newly discovered marsupials to the hapless dodo and the extinct giantbirds called moas that had roamed new zealand until eaten out of existence by the maoris。 hewas the first to describe the archaeopteryx after its discovery in bavaria in 1861 and the firstto write a formal epitaph for the dodo。 altogether he produced some six hundred anatomicalpapers； a prodigious output。
but it was for his work with dinosaurs that owen is remembered。 he coined the termdinosauria in 1841。 it means 鈥渢errible lizard鈥潯nd was a curiously inapt name。 dinosaurs； aswe now know； weren鈥檛 all terrible鈥攕ome were no bigger than rabbits and probably extremelyretiring鈥攁nd the one thing they most emphatically were not was lizards； which are actually ofa much older （by thirty million years） lineage。 owen was well aware that the creatures werereptilian and had at his disposal a perfectly good greek word； herpeton； but for some reasonchose not to use it。 another； more excusable error （given the paucity of specimens at the time）was that dinosaurs constitute not one but two orders of reptiles： the bird…hipped ornithischiansand the lizard…hipped saurischians。
owen was not an attractive person； in appearance or in temperament。 a photograph fromhis late middle years shows him as gaunt and sinister； like the villain in a victorianmelodrama； with long； lank hair and bulging eyes鈥攁 face to frighten babies。 in manner hewas cold and imperious； and he was without scruple in the furtherance of his ambitions。 hewas the only person charles darwin was ever known to hate。 even owen鈥檚 son （who soonafter killed himself） referred to his father鈥檚 鈥渓amentable coldness of heart。鈥�
his undoubted gifts as an anatomist allowed him to get away with the most barefaceddishonesties。 in 1857； the naturalist t。 h。 huxley was leafing through a new edition ofchurchill鈥檚 medical directory when he noticed that owen was listed as professor ofparative anatomy and physiology at the government school of mines； which rathersurprised huxley as that was the position he held。 upon inquiring how churchill鈥檚 had madesuch an elemental error； he was told that the information had been provided to them by dr。
owen himself。 a fellow naturalist named hugh falconer； meanwhile； caught owen taking credit for one of his discoveries。 others accused him of borrowing specimens； then denyinghe had done so。 owen even fell into a bitter dispute with the queen鈥檚 dentist over the creditfor a theory concerning the physiology of teeth。
he did not hesitate to persecute those whom he disliked。 early in his career owen used hisinfluence at the zoological society to blackball a young man named robert grant whose onlycrime was to have shown promise as a fellow anatomist。 grant was astonished to discover thathe was suddenly denied access to the anatomical specimens he needed to conduct hisresearch。 unable to pursue his work； he sank into an understandably dispirited obscurity。
but no one suffered more from owen鈥檚 unkindly attentions than the hapless andincreasingly tragic gideon mantell。 after losing his wife； his children； his medical practice；and most of his fossil collection； mantell moved to london。 there in 1841鈥攖he fateful yearin which owen would achieve his greatest glory for naming and identifying the dinosaurs鈥攎antell was involved in a terrible accident。 while crossing clapham mon in a carriage；he somehow fell from his seat； grew entangled in the reins； and was dragged at a gallop overrough ground by the panicked horses。 the accident left him bent； crippled； and in chronicpain； with a spine damaged beyond repair。
capitalizing on mantell鈥檚 enfeebled state； owen set about systematically expungingmantell鈥檚 contributions from the record； renaming species that mantell had named yearsbefore and claiming credit for their discovery for himself。 mantell continued to try to dooriginal research but owen used his influence at the royal society to ensure that most of hispapers were rejected。 in 1852； unable to bear any more pain or persecution； mantell took hisown life。 his deformed spine was removed and sent to the royal college of surgeonswhere鈥攁nd now here鈥檚 an irony for you鈥攊t was placed in the care of richard owen； directorof the college鈥檚 hunterian museum。
but the insults had not quite finished。 soon after mantell鈥檚 death an arrestingly uncharitableobituary appeared in the literary gazette。 in it mantell was characterized as a mediocreanatomist whose modest contributions to paleontology were limited by a 鈥渨ant of exactknowledge。鈥潯he obituary even removed the discovery of the iguanodon from him andcredited it instead to cuvier and owen； among others。 though the piece carried no byline； thestyle was owen鈥檚 and no one in the world of the natural sciences doubted the authorship。
by this stage； however； owen鈥檚 transgressions were beginning to catch up with him。 hisundoing began when a mittee of the royal society鈥攁 mittee of which he happenedto be chairman鈥攄ecided to award him its highest honor； the royal medal； for a paper he hadwritten on an extinct mollusc called the belemnite。 鈥渉owever；鈥潯s deborah cadbury notes inher excellent history of the period； terrible lizard； 鈥渢his piece of work was not quite asoriginal as it appeared。鈥潯he belemnite； it turned out； had been discovered four years earlierby an amateur naturalist named chaning pearce； and the discovery had been fully reported ata meeting of the geological society。 owen had been at that meeting； but failed to mentionthis when he presented a report of his own to the royal society鈥攊n which； not incidentally；he rechristened the creature belemnites owenii in his own honor。 although owen was allowedto keep the royal medal； the episode left a permanent tarnish on his reputation； even amonghis few remaining supporters。
eventually huxley managed to do to owen what owen had done to so many others： he hadhim voted off the councils of the zoological and royal societies。 as a final insult huxleybecame the new hunterian professor at the royal college of surgeons。
owen would never again do important research； but the latter half of his career was devotedto one unexceptionable pursuit for which we can all be grateful。 in 1856 he became head ofthe natural history section of the british museum； in which capacity he became the drivingforce behind the creation of london鈥檚 natural history museum。 the grand and belovedgothic heap in south kensington； opened in 1880； is almost entirely a testament to his vision。
before owen； museums were designed primarily for the use and edification of the elite； andeven then it was difficult to gain access。 in the early days of the british museum； prospectivevisitors had to make a written application and undergo a brief interview to determine if theywere fit to be admitted at all。 they then had to return a second time to pick up a ticket鈥攖hat isassuming they had passed the interview鈥攁nd finally e back a third time to view themuseum鈥檚 treasures。 even then they were whisked through in groups and not allowed tolinger。 owen鈥檚 plan was to wele everyone； even to the point of encouraging workingmento visit in the evening； and to devote most of the museum鈥檚 space to public displays。 he evenproposed； very radically； to put informative labels on each display so that people couldappreciate what they were viewing。 in this； somewhat unexpectedly； he was opposed by t。 h。
huxley； who believed that museums should be primarily research institutes。 by making thenatural history museum an institution for everyone； owen transformed our expectations ofwhat museums are for。
still； his altruism in general toward his fellow man did not deflect him from more personalrivalries。 one of his last official acts was to lobby against a proposal to erect a statue inmemory of charles darwin。 in this he failed鈥攖hough he did achieve a certain belated；inadvertent triumph。 today his statue mands a masterly view from the staircase of themain hall in the natural history museum； while darwin and t。 h。 huxley are consignedsomewhat obscurely to the museum coffee shop； where they stare gravely over peoplesnacking on cups of tea and jam doughnuts。
it would be reasonable to suppose that richard owen鈥檚 petty rivalries marked the low pointof nineteenth…century paleontology； but in fact worse was to e； this time from overseas。 inamerica in the closing decades of the century there arose a rivalry even more spectacularlyvenomous； if not quite as destructive。 it was between two strange and ruthless men； edwarddrinker cope and othniel charles marsh。
they had much in mon。 both were spoiled； driven； self…centered； quarrelsome； jealous；mistrustful； and ever unhappy。 between them they changed the world of paleontology。
they began as mutual friends and admirers； even naming fossil species after each other；and spent a pleasant week together in 1868。 however； something then went wrong betweenthem鈥攏obody is quite sure what鈥攁nd by the following year they had developed an enmitythat would grow into consuming hatred over the next thirty years。 it is probably safe to saythat no two people in the natural sciences have ever despised each other more。
marsh； the elder of the two by eight years； was a retiring and bookish fellow； with a trimbeard and dapper manner； who spent little time in the field and was seldom very