A large dinosaur skeleton has sold for $44.6m (£34m) at a Sotheby’s auction in New York City, setting a record for the highest amount ever paid for a fossil.
The stegosaurus, nicknamed Apex, stands 11ft (3.4m) tall and measures 27ft long from nose to tail. Sotheby’s described it as one of the most complete skeletons ever discovered.
The skeleton was purchased by an anonymous buyer, who commented, “Apex was born in America and is going to stay in America,” suggesting that it might be loaned to a US institution.
Apex was discovered by chance by a paleontologist in 2022 near the town of Dinosaur in Colorado.
“The finest stegosaurus to appear at auction, ‘Apex’ has made history today [Wednesday] selling for $44.6 million at Sotheby’s to become the most valuable fossil ever sold at auction,” Sotheby’s said in a statement.
The fossil exceeded its pre-sale estimates by more than 11 times, selling “to applause after 15 minutes,” according to the auction house.
Seven buyers competed in the bidding for the largest stegosaurus fossil ever found.
Apex was discovered by Jason Cooper, a professional fossil hunter, who named it Apex due to its formidable dimensions, suggesting it was a dominant animal in its environment.
Apex is believed to have roamed the Earth about 150 million years ago during the Late Jurassic Period.
The previous record for a dinosaur fossil sale was set in 2020 when a Tyrannosaurus Rex, known as Stan, sold for $31.8m.