Dinosaur skeleton that lived 77 million years ago sold for an imaginary number

A complete skeleton of a gorgosaurus, a T-rex dinosaur that lived more than 77 million years ago, has sold for $6.1 million at Sotheby’s in New York.

Sotheby’s noted that this dinosaur had become “one of the most expensive dinosaurs ever sold at auction.”

The gorgosaurus was found in 2018, with a height of about three meters and a length of 6.7 in the geological formation of the Judith River in the US state of Montana, and it was in the possession of private parties before the house acquired it.

Sotheby’s offered it at an estimated price of between 5 and 8 million dollars, noting that it was in “excellent condition”, according to “AFP”.

The gorgosaurus, similar to the T-Rex, belonged to the family of tyrannosaurs (tyrant lizards), and lived in the late Cretaceous period and became extinct about 77 million years ago.
Cassandra Hutton, head of popular science and culture at auction house, said that “almost all gorgosaurs that have been found are in museums, but this skeleton is the only one that can be bought.”

Currently, the sale of dinosaur skeletons regularly revives auctions, which worries paleontologists, who believe that selling them reduces the chances of displaying them in museums and making them available for use in scientific research.

In an auction organized by Christie’s in New York in May, an Asian bought for 12.4 million dollars, including costs, a skeleton of Deinonicus, which was inspired by the character of the Velociraptor in the “Jurassic Park” series (1993) directed by Steven Spielberg.

This number is double the estimated price that was quoted, making this sale the second most expensive transaction for dinosaur skeletons, after the price at which Tyrannosaurus rex sold in 2020 of $ 31.8 million.