T. rex fossil fetches more than $50 million at auction from mystery bidder

A rare Tyrannosaurus rex fossil believed to be one of the largest and most complete ever discovered has been sold at auction for more than $50 million to an anonymous bidder.

Sotheby’s in New York said the 67-million-year-old fossil, nicknamed Gus, is now the most expensive set of dinosaur bones ever auctioned, selling for $50.1 million, surpassing the nearly $45 million price tag for an almost complete Stegosaurus sold by the same auction house in 2024.

Before that, the record was for a Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton nicknamed Stan, which sold for nearly $32 million in 2020.

Gus, a 38-foot-long T. rex, is 63 per cent complete, according to Sotheby’s, with those bones making up 75 to 80 percent of the animal’s total mass.

Standing upright with its tail extended and right foot slightly raised, Gus is an adult dinosaur specimen measuring about 12 and a half feet (3.8 meters) tall and has been remarkably well preserved, with a jaw full of teeth,  two “well represented” feet and a number of rarely found bones, including a furcula, or wishbone.

The dinosaur was discovered in 2021 on a cattle ranch in South Dakota, close to where a team of paleontologists had just completed another dig. Within days of searching, a metatarsal was found and a five-year excavation and reconstruction involving more than 1,000 pieces ensued.

It was named after the ranch’s owner, Gary Licking, who died during excavation.

“Gus is not only an exceptional find, but a specimen that’s been excavated, documented, prepared, and cared for with real excellence,” Cassandra Hatton, Sotheby’s vice chair, said after the sale on Tuesday.

“The market responds when great specimens are taken care of in the right way,” she added.

The auction house said the top bidder, who participated by phone, remains anonymous and outspent six other prospective buyers during a 10-minute battle, with auctioneer Phyllis Kao coaxing them to “Try a bigger bite” at one point during the exchange.

The private sale of the fossil has ruffled feathers in the scientific community, who say a specimen of its size and significance should be on display in museums and other research institutions so that it can be “preserved, documented, and accessible for future generations.”

“Our hope is that the new owner recognizes the extraordinary scientific and educational value of Gus the T. rex and that they aim to keep it in the public trust by immediately donating it to an accredited natural history museum,” Kristi Curry Rogers, the president-elect of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, an advocacy group of scientists, scholars and students, said in a statement to The Associated Press on Tuesday.

“That outcome would ensure that this remarkable specimen continues to advance science, rather than becoming unavailable for study.”

The piece had been estimated to fetch between $20 and $30 million ahead of the sale.

— with files from the Associated Press