NEW DELHI: A 150 million-year-old well preserved nearly complete Stegosaurus fossil, known as” Apex”, was sold at a Sotheby’s auction on Wednesday for an astonishing$ 44.6 million, surpassing the pre-sale estimate of$ 4 million to$ 6 million.
The unidentified American consumer plans to look into borrowing the specimen to a US organization after outbidging six other challengers. The price also broke the previous record for dinosaur fossils set in 2020, when a Stan-named Tyrannosaurus rex skull was sold for$ 31.8 million.
Cassandra Hatton, mind of Sotheby’s science-related company, emphasised the importance of Apex’s purchase, stating,” Apex’ has presently taken its place in history, some 150 million years since it roamed the planet.'”
But, educational palaeontologists have criticized the sale of such fossils because they think these specimens should be kept in museums or research facilities that may not have the money to deal with high auction prices.
Stegosaurus, known for its unique sheets along its up, was one of the most recognized animals. Apex, standing at 11 feet ( 3.3 meters ) tall and measuring 27 feet ( 8.2 meters ) from nose to tail, was a large stegosaurus that exhibited signs of arthritis, indicating its advanced age.
Professional catch Jason Cooper discovered the coal on his home in Dinosaur, Colorado, which is near to Dinosaur National Monument and the Utah borders in 2022.
