• Natural Sciences -> Geology and paleontology

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What is the most expensive fossil ever sold and who bought it?

Caitlyn Antoni

Well, I don't have much of an interest in fossils, but I do remember hearing about a particular sale a few years ago that made headlines. Apparently, the most expensive fossil ever sold was a Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton that was put up for auction at a price of over $8 million! The sale was held in New York in 1997 and the lucky buyer was none other than the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago.

From what I remember, the T-rex skeleton was discovered in South Dakota in 1990 by a team of paleontologists led by a man named Sue Hendrickson. The fossil was named "Sue" in her honor and was initially sold to a private collector named Peter Larson. However, the sale was soon contested by the federal government on the grounds that the fossil had been taken from federal land and was therefore the property of the government.

After a long legal battle, the skeleton was eventually put up for auction and the Field Museum emerged as the top bidder. The museum paid $8.4 million for the skeleton, making it the most expensive fossil ever sold. It's now on display at the museum and is considered one of their most prized possessions.

I find it fascinating to think about the value that we place on ancient relics like fossils. While $8 million seems like an astronomical amount of money, it's a small price to pay for a piece of our natural history that tells us so much about the world that once was. It's a reminder that there's still so much we have yet to learn about our planet and the creatures that once roamed it.