Fossil estimated to be 150 million years old
A 22-meter-long apatosaurus skeleton, one of the largest and most complete ever discovered, has set a new record by selling for six million euros ($6.4 million) at auction on Saturday. This price marks the highest ever paid for a dinosaur skeleton.
The fossil was purchased by an anonymous collector for 4.7 million euros, with the final price reaching six million euros after additional fees, according to auction houses Collin du Bocage and Barbarossa. The skeleton, which was found in Wyoming, USA, is estimated to be around 150 million years old and is made up of 75 to 80 percent of the original bones.
The skeleton, named “Vulcan,” was excavated between 2019 and 2021 and underwent two years of restoration work at the Paleomoove Laboratory in Luberon, France. Once weighing around 20 tonnes, it was displayed at the orangerie of Dampierre-en-Yvelines, a château located 50 kilometers southwest of Paris, before being sold.
This extraordinary find includes 300 bones and was initially estimated to sell for between three and five million euros. Auctioneers Barbarossa confirmed that this sale is the largest dinosaur skeleton ever auctioned globally. As part of the purchase agreement, the buyer has pledged to loan the skeleton to a museum for public viewing and agreed to allow paleontologists access for study purposes.
The apatosaurus fossil was discovered under legal excavation permits in the U.S., marking a significant moment in both the paleontology field and fossil auction history. “We are happy that the buyer intends to lend it to an institution,” said Olivier Collin du Bocage, one of the auction organizers.