 Osborn listed Cope 's cause of death as uremic poisoning , combined with a large prostate , but the true cause of death is unknown . Many believed Cope had died of syphilis contracted from the women with whom he fraternized during his travels . In 1995 , Davidson gained permission to have the skeleton examined by a medical doctor at the university . Dr. Morrie <unk> , a professor of radiology , concluded no evidence of bony syphilis was found on Cope 's skeleton . 
