The Carnegie Collection Dilophosaurus (1994)
Photo from the 1994 Safari Ltd. catalog.
424-01 Dilophosaurus pair
Species: Dilophosaurus wetherilliFirst release: 1994
Retired: 2009
Model number: 424-01 / 4024-01
Size: 17 cm
Scale: 1:40
Sculptor: Forest Rogers
The Carnegie Dilophosaurus was the first time a pair of models were sold as a set. While the earlier Australopithecus male and female and Apatosaurus with baby were technically meant to be pairs, they were all sold separately. Here, the two dilophosaurs were posed as if fighting each other. They came twist-tied to a piece of cardboard with the Carnegie Collection and Safari Ltd. logos and info printed on it, as well as with the trademark parchment paper Carnegie tag. The earliest release of these models had distinctly heart-shaped red spots on their sides, which was obscured/toned down in later releases. My recollection is that these were released in February of 1994 (I was keeping a pretty close eye on new Carnegie releases via the Safari catalog by this point, and I think I actually ordered these by mail), making the heart seem like a conscious choice to coincide with Valentine's Day, but that could just be a coincidence...
Note that I have come across several examples (including my first set, purchased at the time of initial release) where a pair of figures sold together seem to have come from two different molds. Clearly, at least two molds were created during initial production and were being run at the same time. In my 1994 set, the rearing individual is marked as coming from mold 2, while the crouching one is marked 1. As you can see below, this is not just labelling the figures 1 and 2, because rearing 1s and crouching 2s can variously be found. It is likely the two molds were run through production concurrently, sent for painting, and then attached to the cardboard "base" without regard for matching mold numbers, making tracking changes to each mold even more difficult. Where possible, I have filled in belly stamp information based on samples other than the one in the photos.
Mold 1
Version: 1
Release: 1994
Status: Original
Material: Hard gray vinyl
Paint: Glossy. 9 colors. Tan (body); white (underside, teeth); red (spots, crests); black (spot outlines, claw tips, pupils); orange (spot highlights); gray (claws); green (eyes); pink (mouth); brown (wash).
Rearing stamp text: Left-aligned. DILOPHOSAURUS / (C) 1993 THE CARNEGIE / SAFARI LTD. / MIAMI FLORIDA / MADE IN CHINA "2" (backwards) / CE
CE mark: Small
Crouching stamp text: Left-aligned. DILOPHOSAURUS / (C) 1993 THE CARNEGIE / SAFARI LTD. / MIAMI FLORIDA / MADE IN CHINA "1" (upside down) / CE
CE mark: Small
TDR rating: 2/10
CE mark: Small
TDR rating: 2/10
The second mold is very hard to distinguish from the first mold, aside from the different number on the belly stamp. Note that my pair came with the rearing figure from mold 2 but the crouching figure from mold 1.
Version: 2
Release: c. 1995
Status: Minor retool
Material: Hard dark gray vinyl
Paint: Glossy. 9 colors. Tan (body); white (underside, teeth); red (spots, crests); black (spot outlines, claw tips, pupils); orange (spot highlights); gray (claws); green (eyes); pink (mouth); brown (wash).
Rearing stamp text: ?
Crouching stamp text: Left-aligned. DILOPHOSAURUS / (C) 1993 THE CARNEGIE / SAFARI LTD. / MIAMI FLORIDA / MADE IN CHINA / CE / "1" (upside down)
CE mark: Large
TDR rating: 1/10
Essentially the same as the previous version, but with a large CE mark under the main stamp text (crouching individual). Note: The rearing individual in the pictured set was produced using mold 2.
Crouching stamp text: Left-aligned. DILOPHOSAURUS / (C) 1993 THE CARNEGIE / SAFARI LTD. / MIAMI FLORIDA / MADE IN CHINA / CE / "1" (upside down)
CE mark: Large
TDR rating: 1/10
Essentially the same as the previous version, but with a large CE mark under the main stamp text (crouching individual). Note: The rearing individual in the pictured set was produced using mold 2.
Version: 3
Release: c. 1995
Status: Minor retool
Material: Gray vinyl
Paint: Glossy. 9 colors. Tan (body); white (underside, teeth); red (spots, crests); black (spot outlines, claw tips, pupils); orange (spot highlights); gray (claws); green (eyes); pink (mouth); brown (wash).
Rearing stamp text: Left-aligned. DILOPHOSAURUS / (C) 1993 THE CARNEGIE / SAFARI LTD. / MIAMI FLORIDA / MADE IN CHINA / CE 1
CE mark: Small
Crouching stamp text: Left-aligned. DILOPHOSAURUS / (C) 1993 THE CARNEGIE / SAFARI LTD. / MIAMI FLORIDA / MADE IN CHINA CE
CE mark: Small
TDR rating: 4/10
This version has slightly simplified paint applications, and a small CE mark moved to the right of "Made in China" on the crouching individual.
TDR rating: 4/10
This version has slightly simplified paint applications, and a small CE mark moved to the right of "Made in China" on the crouching individual.
Version: 4
Release: 1997
Status: Minor repaint, material variation.
Material: Hard tan vinyl
Paint: Glossy. 8 colors. White (underside, teeth); red (spots, crests); black (spot outlines, claw tips, pupils); orange (spot highlights); gray (claws); green (eyes); pink (mouth); brown (wash).
Rearing stamp text: Left-aligned. DILOPHOSAURUS / (C) 1993 THE CARNEGIE / SAFARI LTD. / MIAMI FLORIDA / MADE IN CHINA / CE / 1 (upside down)
CE mark: Small
Crouching stamp text: ?
TDR rating: 1/10
The same mold and date stamp as the previous version, but these came cast in brown vinyl instead of painted gray vinyl. The heart shapes on the flanks have been made more irregular and use a darker red color than the original version.
TDR rating: 1/10
The same mold and date stamp as the previous version, but these came cast in brown vinyl instead of painted gray vinyl. The heart shapes on the flanks have been made more irregular and use a darker red color than the original version.
Mold 2
Version: 1
Release: 1994
Status: Original
Material: Hard gray vinyl
Paint: Glossy. 9 colors. Tan (body); white (underside, teeth); red (spots, crests); black (spot outlines, claw tips, pupils); orange (spot highlights); gray (claws); green (eyes); pink (mouth); brown (wash).
Rearing stamp text: Left-aligned. DILOPHOSAURUS / (C) 1993 THE CARNEGIE / SAFARI LTD. / MIAMI FLORIDA / MADE IN CHINA "2" (backwards) / CE
CE mark: Small
Crouching stamp text: Left-aligned. DILOPHOSAURUS / (C) 1993 THE CARNEGIE / SAFARI LTD. / MIAMI FLORIDA / MADE IN CHINA "2" (upside down) / CE
CE mark: Small
TDR rating: 2/10
CE mark: Small
TDR rating: 2/10
The second mold is very hard to distinguish from the first mold, aside from the different number on the belly stamp. Note that my pair came with the rearing figure from mold 2 but the crouching figure from mold 1.
Version: 2
Release: 1996
Status: Secondary mold
Material: ?
Paint: Matte. 9 colors. White (underside, teeth); dark red (spots); light red (crests); black (spot outlines, claw tips, pupils); orange (spot highlights); gray (claws); green (eyes); pink (mouth); brown (wash).
Crouching stamp text: Left-aligned. DILOPHOSAURUS / (C) 1993 THE CARNEGIE / SAFARI LTD. / MIAMI FLORIDA / MADE IN CHINA "2" (upside down) / CE
CE mark: Small
Rearing stamp text: ?
TDR rating: 1/10
This seems to be a secondary mold, very close to the original but with some minor differences, most notably the number "2" on the belly stamp. Weirdly, the 2 is imprinted upside down on the crouching individual and backwards on the rearing individual.
TDR rating: 1/10
This seems to be a secondary mold, very close to the original but with some minor differences, most notably the number "2" on the belly stamp. Weirdly, the 2 is imprinted upside down on the crouching individual and backwards on the rearing individual.
Version: 3
Release: 1996
Status: Minor repaint, material variation.
Material: Hard tan vinyl
Paint: Matte. 9 colors. White (underside, teeth); dark red (spots); light red (crests); black (spot outlines, claw tips, pupils); orange (spot highlights); gray (claws); green (eyes); pink (mouth); brown (wash).
Rearing stamp text: Left-aligned. DILOPHOSAURUS / (C) 1993 THE CARNEGIE / SAFARI LTD. / MIAMI FLORIDA / MADE IN CHINA "2" (backward) / CE
CE mark: Small
TDR rating: 1/10
The same mold and date stamp as the previous version, but these came cast in brown vinyl instead of painted gray vinyl and lacked a dark brown wash. The heart shapes on the flanks have been made more irregular and use a darker red color than the original version. Note that the light tan highlights are now an irregular "squiggle" inside the black outline of the heart markings. Also note the bigger, thicker fingers on the rearing individual, characteristic of the mold fatigue suffered by some of these Carnegie secondary molds in the late 1990s.
Interestingly, the color vinyl pair I have show two different info stamps on the belly. The rearing individual has the same stamp as the first edition Dilophosaurus. The crouching individual has a larger CE mark without the backwards number 2. My set came from a Dinosaur Mountain display produced circa 2005, so the different molds may have been mixed and matched when putting together paired sets.
Picture coming soon
Version: 4
Release: c. 2000
Status: Minor retool
Material: Hard tan vinyl
Paint: Glossy. 9 colors. Tan (body); white (underside, teeth); red (spots, crests); black (spot outlines, claw tips, pupils); orange (spot highlights); gray (claws); green (eyes); pink (mouth); brown (wash).
Rearing stamp text: Left-aligned. DILOPHOSAURUS / (C) 1993 THE CARNEGIE / SAFARI LTD. / MIAMI FLORIDA / MADE IN CHINA 2 / CE
CE mark: Small
Crouching stamp text: Left-aligned. DILOPHOSAURUS / (C) 1993 THE CARNEGIE / SAFARI LTD. / MIAMI FLORIDA / MADE IN CHINA CE
CE mark: Large
TDR rating: 1/10
Essentially the same as the previous color vinyl version, but with a large CE mark and corrected number 2 marking.
TDR rating: 1/10
Essentially the same as the previous color vinyl version, but with a large CE mark and corrected number 2 marking.
On my Version 2's, the rearing one has a small CE and a backwards 2 to the right; the crouching one has a large CE.
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