Jul 18, 2024 - Business

Dinosaur fossil sells for record $44.6 million at auction

Rebecca Falconer

150-million-year-old fossil of Stegosaurus specimen is on display at Sotheby's in New York on July 10, 2024. The fossil dubbed "Apex" by the paleontologist is expected to fetch $4 million to $6 million at auction on July 17, 2024, making it one of the most expensive fossils ever sold. — A 150-million-year-old fossil of a stegosaurus specimen, dubbed "Apex," on display at Sotheby's in New York earlier this month. Photo: Charly Triballeau/AFP via Getty Images

The most complete and largest stegosaurus fossil sold for $44.6 million at auction in New York on Wednesday, Sotheby's announced.

Why it matters: Dubbed "Apex," the dinosaur skeleton is the "most valuable fossil ever sold at auction," according to the auction house. It was only expected to fetch $4 million-$6 million.

It shattered the previous fossil trade record of $31.8 million set by the 2020 sale of a Tyrannosaurus rex and comes amid soaring demand for prehistoric fossils that's prompted paleontologists to worry that scientists "could be priced out of the market," per the New York Times.

The big picture: Apex measures around 11ft tall and 27ft long and was "discovered in 2022 on privately owned land in Moffat County, Colorado, near the aptly-named town of Dinosaur," per a Sotheby's statement.

"The quality of the fossil is excellent," Cassandra Hatton, Sotheby's senior vice president, and global head of science and popular culture, said in a statement. "Even impressions of the skin have been preserved."
Ken Griffin, the founder and CEO of hedge fund Citadel, said after purchasing the stegosaurus fossil that he intended to loan Apex to a U.S. museum, according to the Wall Street Journal.
"Apex was born in America and is going to stay in America," he added.

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Dinosaur fossil sells for record $44.6 million at auction

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