You can own a full dinosaur skeleton but only if you have £1 million (Rs 7,32,87,500 INR) to spare.
A skeleton of Allosaurus found in Wyoming is slated to fetch for around £1million at an upcoming auction. Currently, the fossil is being displayed in Paris as Hôtel Drouot auction house. The auction will take place there on October 13 by Maison Binoche et Giquello.
The fossil was discovered four years ago during a dig in Johnson County, Wyoming. It is one of the seven known states of United States of America where carnivores roamed during the Late Jurassic Period (145 to 161 million years ago). This specimen is around 150 million years old and stands at a height of 11.5ft and 33ft long. This beast is one of the largest of its species to be discovered so far.
The auction will hold a menagerie of other prehistoric artefacts. Hypebeast reports that meteorites and fossils are up for grabs from various prehistoric ages. There will be perfectly preserved fossils like mammoth tusks, dinosaur eggs, butterflies and lilies (all one needs is a mosquito preserved in Amber to make their Jurassic park dreams come true).
However, the Allosaur at the auction Naturalia will be the centrepiece- the big prize. The primary analysis and X-ray studies of injury marks found on the beast’s ribs suggest that it was in a fight with one of its rivals. Whether or not the clash caused it death isn’t clear but one thing is definite- it was a ferocious, carnivorous beast.
Allosaurus literally translates to “different reptile.” It was among the first-ever discovered dinosaurs and is a therapod; the same clade that includes Tyrannosaurus Rex and Velociraptor as well as the predecessor to modern, avian birds.
In September, a T. Rex skeleton had fetched $30 million (nearly INR 2,19,94,50,000) at an auction by Christies. This specimen was also discovered in Wyoming, making it a neighbour of the Allosaurus up for sale this week.
The buyer was anonymous so the T. Rex could be gracing any billionaire’s house at the moment.