The Field Museum of Natural History[Footnote 1][Footnote 2] is located in Chicago, and fist appears in Dead Beat.
Description[]
Based upon the actual institution, The Field Museum was founded in 1893 as the Columbian Museum of Chicago. Currently it is home to the most complete and best-preserved Tyrannosaurus rex fossil yet discovered, nicknamed Sue after its discoverer. In Dead Beat, Harry Dresden visits the museum and revives the fossil dinosaur in order to ride it into battle against a powerful necromancer.
A ley line runs under the Museum.[1]
In the series[]
Dead Beat[]
- Main article: Dead Beat
In Dead Beat, Harry Dresden follows some clues left by the ghosts that Mortimer Lindquist called forth to help—they spattered red dots on a map at locations where there was necromancer activity. The Field Museum is one those locations. Dresden arrives to find an investigation going on for the murder of Dr. Bartlesby. Dresden looks around and Listens. A police officer, Henry Rawlins, was asking the security guard questions, rather than the detectives on the scenes. Rawlins gave Dresden a photo of Bartlesby's two assistants: Alicia Nelson and Li Xian. It turns out later that Alicia Nelson is really Corpsetaker, a necromancer.[2]
Later, Dresden uses a GPS and the numbers he and Butters found on Bony Tony Mendoza's corpse at the Morgue to locate the Word of Kemmler. They find the Word in the Field Museum taped under the platform that held Sue's skull. When Grevane enters with Liver Spots, Dresden makes Butters leave, then hastily skims through the book for Lasciel to read. Dresden threatens to burn it if Grevane doesn't let him leave, but the he is suddenly covered and incapacitated by conjured snakes from Liver Spots. Grevane takes the book and leaves Dresden, handcuffed in Wizard manacles, in the hands of Liver Spots.[3]
Sue exhibited in the museum.
Liver Spots turns out to be Quintus Cassius, a former Denarian with a grudge against Dresden. Further, he's desperate for a Coin and wants to take Lasciel's Denarius from Dresden. So, he tortures Dresden for his own enjoyment, planning to dissect him alive. However, Butters and Mouse arrive to rescue Dresden, and Mouse kills Cassius; but not before he spoke his death curse, "die alone", to Dresden.[4] Dresden has an internal discussion with Lasciel and his double and learns about the Darkhallow from the knowledge Lasciel recorded from the Word of Kemmler.[5]
With this knowledge, Dresden re-animates Sue using the ley line beneath the museum. He and Butters, who beats his Polka drums to keep Sue under command, then set off to rescue the world from the Heirs of Kemmler, rampaging through the streets of Chicago on a zombie T-Rex.[6]
Proven Guilty[]
- Main article: Proven Guilty
In Proven Guilty, Karrin Murphy informed Harry Dresden about the police finding a dead body ravaged by an animal and three different blood types on the scene.[7]