Fossil Lab Monthly Open House starts in April
March 6, 2026Fossil Lab 5437 S Wabash Avenue
Get up close with paleontology in the Fossil Lab
February 27, 2026By Julian Veenstra-VanderWeele
Lab manager Tyler Keillor working on a specimen in the Fossil Lab. (Photo by Emma Rund)
Quick Takeaways
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The Fossil Lab features remarkable specimens including the massive SuperCroc skull and the preserved Edmontosaurus “mummies,” giving visitors an unusually close look at world-class fossils and reconstructions.
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Members of the community can become an "educational assignee" and get involved in fossil preparation, specimen database work or painting casts, all of which allow participants to take part in genuine paleontological research.
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Monthly open houses offer behind-the-scenes access to fossil excavation, demonstrations with lab tools and creative activities for younger guests, making the lab an inviting space for anyone curious about paleontology.
Did you know that there is a Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton just a short shuttle ride from the University of Chicago?
Located just 10 minutes from campus in the center of the Washington Park neighborhood, Prof. Paul Sereno’s Fossil Lab houses some of the rarest fossil specimens in the world. Along with the T. rex, these include the skull of a Sarcosuchus imperator, a prehistoric crocodilian estimated to have been about 40-feet long—earning it the nickname “SuperCroc.”
SuperCroc skull at a work station in the Fossil Lab. (Photo by Emma Rund)
This UChicago lab’s collection also features dinosaur “mummies,” fossils of a duck-billed dinosaur, Edmontosaurus annectens, with the fine details of scales and hooves preserved in layers of clay. These have allowed Sereno and his team to closely reconstruct the animal’s appearance.
Mummified Edmontosaurus annectens specimen at a work station on the left, and an artist's recreation of the dinosaur on the right. (Photo by Emma Rund; Illustration by Dani Navarro)
Hands-on participation opportunities
Despite its name, the Fossil Lab is not only a space for paleontologists.
Lab manager Tyler Keillor described the 6,000-square-foot lab as a place for anyone “fascinated by dinosaurs and fossils.” In addition to being a research facility, it serves as a shared space for the University and Washington Park communities to come together over an interest in paleontology.
Sereno moved the lab to South Wabash Avenue, just off Garfield Boulevard, in 2024, with the goal of inviting the community into the world of fossil research. Local groups, teachers, and students can tour the facility and use its spacious rooms for meetings and learning.
“Our University is a wonderful place—you [can] pursue anything,” Sereno said.
“If they want to come in, we’ll give them a chance,” Keillor added.
Volunteers begin with what the lab calls practice blocks—artificial rock containing chicken bones—where they can, as Keillor described it, “sit under the microscope using the tools we use and see what it’s like to be a fossil preparator.” Those who do well with the practice blocks are often offered the opportunity to become "educational assignees" and collaborate on real projects under the supervision of Fossil Lab paleontologists.
Besides fossil preparation, educational assignees log specimens into databases and paint fossil casts and dinosaur models. Contact Keillor at tkeillor@uchicago.edu for more information about opportunities to participate at the lab.
The front of the Fossil Lab's building on Wabash Avenue. (Photo by Emma Rund)
Open houses for the whole community
The lab’s monthly open houses offer another way for members of the University and local community to explore the space.
Unlike a museum environment, the Fossil Lab is a research laboratory, which means visitors see the real process behind the displays that eventually appear at major public institutions.
“When you see a dinosaur skeleton at the museum, you almost can’t conceive of the work that went into it—how did it get to be standing there when it was in solid rock before? How do you get from A to B?” Keillor said.
At the open houses, guests see real fossils in various stages of excavation, and lab staff sometimes use power tools to demonstrate parts of the excavation process.
The open houses also include fun activities for children to help them engage with the creative side of paleontology. At one open house this past fall, younger guests tested their artistic abilities in a competition to see who could paint the best design on an illustration of the toenails of an Edmontosaurus.
Keillor emphasized the open houses appeal to a broad audience. "Dinosaurs tend to spark scientific curiosity at an early age—that sense of wonder often resurfaces at these events," he explained. “People come here and haven’t thought about dinosaurs for their whole adult lives, and suddenly they’re excited again because they’re seeing stuff they haven’t thought about since they were kids.”
The next open house is scheduled for April 9 from 3:30 to 5:00 p.m. These events will continue on the second Thursday of every month through November. To learn more about the Fossil Lab, visit its website.