Skeletons of Grover Krantz and His Dog, Clyde, at the Smithsonian Museum

Same guy, same dog. Grover Krantz donated his body to science. His skeleton was articulated along with the skeleton of one of his beloved dogs and displayed in the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History.

Grover Sanders Krantz was an American anthropologist and cryptozoologist. Outside of his formal studies in evolutionary anthropology and primatology, Krantz also did research into the existence of Bigfoot. The latter of those drawing heavy criticism from the science community.

Krantz suffered many failed relationships in his life, one of which with Albert Einstein’s adopted daughter, Evelyn Einstein, whom he had married in 1964 but divorced.

After a long battle with pancreatic cancer, Krantz died on the 14th of February 2002, aged 70. By his request there was no funeral; his body was shipped directly to a body farm to be used in the study of human decomposition and forensic science.

“I’ve been a teacher all my life and I think I might as well be a teacher after I’m dead, so why don’t I just give you my body,” Krantz said. “But there’s one catch: You have to keep my dogs with me.”

He did have one last wish however; that his skeleton was to be kept close to the remains of his three favorite Irish wolfhounds: Clyde, Icky and Yahoo. So in 2009, Krantz’s skeleton was painstakingly articulated and, along with the skeleton of one of his dogs, included on display in the Smithsonian Museum.

Grover Krantz, an anthropologist who wanted his skeletons on display at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, along with his dog. (Photo: Emily Barton)