United StatesA nearly complete Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton, named Gus, sold for $50.1 million at an auction in New York on July 14, 2026, setting a new record for the highest price paid for a dinosaur fossil. The skeleton, composed of 183 bones and additional rare specimens, was fully mounted and ready for exhibition. This sale surpassed the previous record set by a stegosaurus skeleton sold two years earlier for $45 million. Sotheby's had expected the T. rex to sell for between $20 and $30 million, but it was quickly outbid within a 10-minute window. The fossil was discovered in South Dakota's Hell Creek Formation and is one of only 32 known T. rex skeletons, with only two others being over 60% complete.
Bias read (Center): The article presents factual information about a scientific and historical event without any political commentary or ideological framing. The focus is on the auction, the fossil's characteristics, and its significance in paleontology, with no indication of a left or right leaning perspective.
