Sotheby’s giant T. rex auction is raising concerns and the economy is raising science

Forget selling a century. Sotheby’s auction house is preparing for a long-term sale. On July 14 it opened the latest advertising on various brands buried in the groundbut the piece de resistance is lot 20, a rare 67 million year old Tyrannosaurus Rex mask.

The model, named Gus, is said to be one of the largest, most loaded T. rexes attended. Gus is expected to fetch $30 million and will go to the highest bidder, whether it be a public museum or a private collector. The latter took a large part in the purchase of antiques, and auction houses, according to paleontologistswhich helps to achieve this by creating hype. But when private collectors come in and buy buried under the trade as a precious commodity, that history has effectively been lost to science.

By almost all accounts, Gus is a big deal. In its description, Sotheby’s boasts that the specimen, which was found on a farm in South Dakota, contains “an astonishing 183 bones” resulting in “approximately 61% bone count.” The remains have been placed in a metal case with similar equipment to the missing bones. The result is a reconstructed skeleton that looks like it’s being chased by fire, its mouth full of knife-like teeth ready to tear meat apart.

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