Ancient Colorado; Triceratops Swamp
Denver Public Art 1%
2005.4.6
Triceratops Swamp
Marshall Mesa
68 million years ago
Three-horned dinosaurs aptly called Triceratops foraged in Colorado swamps during the Cretaceous Period. Similar swamps exist today along the U.S. Gulf Coast—minus the dinosaurs. The first known Triceratops fossil was discovered in a creek bank in downtown Denver in the late 1880s, with many more found over time.
The Laramie Formation lies 500 feet beneath the Colorado Convention Center. It rises to the surface near Boulder, where it is exposed at Marshall Mesa. The remains of Cretaceous swamp forests form into deposits of underground coal, which was once mined at several Boulder-area locations.
Marshall Mesa
68 million years ago
Three-horned dinosaurs aptly called Triceratops foraged in Colorado swamps during the Cretaceous Period. Similar swamps exist today along the U.S. Gulf Coast—minus the dinosaurs. The first known Triceratops fossil was discovered in a creek bank in downtown Denver in the late 1880s, with many more found over time.
The Laramie Formation lies 500 feet beneath the Colorado Convention Center. It rises to the surface near Boulder, where it is exposed at Marshall Mesa. The remains of Cretaceous swamp forests form into deposits of underground coal, which was once mined at several Boulder-area locations.
Jan Vriesen and Kirk Johnson (rights held by)