A 67-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton, nicknamed “Gus,” is set to be sold at a Sotheby’s auction in New York, drawing sharp criticism from palaeontologists who argue that the commercialization of such fossils harms scientific research. The specimen, which stands roughly 3.8 metres tall in a predatory pose, features large teeth within its gaping jaws. It was discovered on a ranch in Harding County, South Dakota, by the commercial firm Theropoda Expeditions. Excavation took place over a three-year period beginning in 2021 with permission from the landowner, the late Gary “Gus” Licking, for whom the fossil is named. Cole Jacobs, a field prospector for the company, noted in a promotional video that he spotted the metatarsal poking out of the ground on his first day at the site.
The auction follows the 2024 sale of a stegosaurus named Apex, which fetched $44.6 million at Sotheby’s—11 times its listing price. Since the 1997 sale of “Sue,” a 4-metre-tall T. rex purchased for $8 million by the Field Museum in Chicago with support from private donors and companies like McDonald’s Corporation, fossil collecting has increasingly become a hobby for wealthy celebrities, including actor Leonardo DiCaprio. Prof Richard Butler of the University of Birmingham expressed deep concern over the trend of marketing dinosaur fossils as status symbols or commodities. He emphasized that any fossil not held in a recognized museum collection is effectively lost to research, as prices are increasingly beyond the reach of academic institutions.
Prof Stephen Brusatte of the University of Edinburgh noted that while the auction is legal under US law—where landowners maintain rights to what is found on their property—the situation remains problematic. He argued that when a dinosaur fetches tens of millions of dollars, museums and universities are priced out. Furthermore, he highlighted that scientific research must be repeatable, meaning other scientists must be able to verify results, which is only guaranteed if fossils are housed in permanent public repositories. Indeed, many journals now stipulate that research papers must be based on fossils held in such public collections.
Dr Thomas Carr, an associate professor at Carthage College, added that private ownership lacks the security of a public trust, which is tasked with maintaining and curating collections indefinitely. He warned that even museum loans are problematic because a privately owned fossil can be recalled by the owner at any time, undermining the principles of availability and replicability. While Prof Michael Benton of the University of Bristol acknowledged that some private purchasers, such as billionaire hedge fund manager Ken Griffin—who loaned the Apex specimen to the American Natural History Museum for four years—can provide value by sharing their finds, he and other experts agree this is not a substitute for permanent public ownership.
Dr Carr suggested that rare fossils should ideally have legal protection from commercial exploitation on private land, similar to laws in countries like Mongolia where fossils belong to the state. He expressed hope that Gus would eventually be donated to a public trust, stating that a fossil in a public trust is a win for science and society, rather than being hoarded in some “McBillionaire’s” living room. Brusatte added that while he understands the appeal of owning a dinosaur, he hopes the buyer will donate it to a museum. In response, Sotheby’s experts defended the excavation, arguing that private companies often recover fossils that might otherwise remain undiscovered, and that the high price reflects the significant effort and importance of the remains.
“Occasionally things can work well when the purchaser realises they can get even more pleasure from their purchase by sharing it with a wide community, for example through loaning or donating it to a museum or helping to finance a touring exhibition.”
