A 67-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton sold for $50.1 million at a Sotheby's auction in New York, shattering expectations after the specimen was projected to fetch up to $30 million.
The 10-minute bidding war among seven buyers pushed the price past the previous auction record for any dinosaur fossil, surpassing the $44.6 million paid for a stegosaurus named Apex in 2024. The winning bid came from an anonymous buyer.
Nicknamed "Gus", the specimen is one of the most complete T. rex skeletons in existence, with 183 fossilized bones representing more than 60 percent of the animal's skeleton. It stands over 12 feet tall and measures 11.6 metres in length. The fossil was excavated between 2021 and 2023 after its discovery on a South Dakota cattle ranch.