A rare and remarkably preserved stegosaurus skeleton nicknamed “Apex” sold at auction for a record-breaking sum, capturing global attention from paleontology enthusiasts and collectors alike.
The $44.6 million sale at Sotheby’ significantly exceeded pre-sale estimates of $4-6 million and surpassed the previous record, set by a tyrannosaurus rex named Stan, which sold for $31.8 million in 2020. Apex’s anonymous buyer was American, the auction house told the Associated Press, and beat out six other bidders.
Following the sale, the buyer is said by Sotheby’s to have remarked: “Apex was born in America and is going to stay in America!”
“I am thrilled that such an important specimen has now taken its place in history, some 150 million years since it roamed the planet,” Sotheby’s Global Head of Science & Popular Culture, Cassandra Hatton, told Newsweek.
The fossil was discovered by commercial paleontologist Jason Cooper in, perhaps appropriately, Dinosaur, Colorado in 2022. It is one of the most complete stegosaurus specimens ever found and measures 11 feet tall and 27 feet long. Apex’s impressive size and completeness made it a coveted item at the auction.
Apex was meticulously excavated, restored, and prepared for display over the following year and a half. The skeleton exhibits signs of arthritis, suggesting that Apex lived to an advanced age without evidence of combat-related injuries or post-mortem scavenging.
“This sale has been years in the making, and at every turn, we have worked closely with Jason Cooper, from the moment of its discovery in Dinosaur, Colorado, to its sale in New York,” Hatton said.
Dinosaur fossil sales are known to cause controversy among the paleontology community and the anonymous buyer has expressed intentions to loan the fossil to a U.S. institution, according to AP.
“This skeleton really does belong in a museum, where it can be conserved, studied by scientists and put on display to inspire people from all walks of life,” Steve Brusatte, a professor of paleontology and evolution at the University of Edinburgh, told CNN.
The stegosaurus was a herbivorous dinosaur that lived in the late Jurassic period, some 145 million to 152 million years ago. Known for its distinctive double row of kite-shaped plates along its back and the spiked tail, stegosaurus could reach up to 30 feet in length. The plates, potentially used for thermoregulation or display, added to its unique appearance.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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