Rare dinosaur skeleton sold at an auction for $47.3M
What's the story
A rare Nanotyrannus skeleton, a smaller relative of the Tyrannosaurus rex, has been sold at auction in New York for a whopping $47.3 million. The sale was conducted by Sotheby's after a fierce 12-minute bidding war with six bidders participating online and over the phone. The fossil, dubbed "Jodi" after its discoverer Jodi Pierson, who unearthed it in 2019, is now one of the world's most expensive fossils.
Auction details
Second most valuable dinosaur sold at auction
Initially, Sotheby's estimated the skeleton would fetch between $6 million and $9 million.
However, the final bid exceeded all expectations, making "Jodi" the second most valuable dinosaur ever sold at auction.
The buyer's identity remains undisclosed.
Discovered by Pierson on her private land in Montana's Hell Creek Formation near Jordan, "Jodi" is one of only three substantial Nanotyrannus skeletons known to science.
Fossil features
Nanotyrannus measures 19.6 feet long
The Nanotyrannus skeleton measures 19.6 feet long from nose to tail and stands about 9.6 feet tall on the armature, comprising around 191 fossil bone elements.
Cassandra Hatton, Sotheby's Vice Chair and Global Head of Science and Natural History, emphasized the team's dedication to excavating and preserving "Jodi."
She said their commitment has been instrumental in bringing this remarkable specimen to market, highlighting its scientific importance.
Species distinction
It lived alongside Tyrannosaurus rex
Sotheby's described the Nanotyrannus as a fast, specialized carnivorous tyrannosaurid that lived alongside Tyrannosaurus rex at the end of the Cretaceous period, about 67 million years ago.
The auction house also noted that while some once thought it to be an adolescent T. rex, studies have shown over 150 morphological differences distinguishing it from its much larger cousin.
Ownership debate
Debate over ethics of such multimillion-dollar fossil sales
The sale and price of the fossil have drawn criticism from some in the scientific community.
Thomas R Holtz Jr, a vertebrate paleontology expert at the University of Maryland, expressed concerns about such multimillion-dollar fossil sales.
He argued that potentially scientifically significant fossils like "Jodi" could be lost to research and public access when they are privately owned.