Sotheby’s is auctioning off the fossilized skeleton of a Gorgosaurus, an earlier relative of the Tyrannosaurus rex.
Gorgosaurus was a Cretaceous Period explorer and is a native of western North America.
“So Gorgosaurus predated T. rex by at least 10 million years,” Sotheby’s CassandraHatton stated. “You could say, or paleontologists speculate, that Gorgosaurus was fiercer, actually roamed the earth for a longer time span, anywhere from 10 to 20 million years. We’re not certain because there’s no exact end and beginning date for them.”
Gorgosaurus roamed during the Cretaceous Period and is native to western North America.
The skeleton that will be auctioned off was unearthed in Montana and measures 10-feet tall and 23-feet long.
“There are crucial elements of the skull that are present and the occipital area, for example, which is the part that tells us that this is a Gorgosaurus versus, say, a juvenile T. rex or something,” Hatton said.
“…You find the fossils and you basically glue them back together. It’s like the biggest puzzle you’ve ever built.”
The winning bidder will receive casting rights so that they can copy the original fossils and sell them to museums.
Sotheby’s expects this skeleton to fetch between $5 million and $8 million at auction.