Europe's first T-rex skeleton 'Trinity' sold for 5.55 million Swiss francs
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First and biggest in Europe, the well-preserved T-rex skeleton Trinity was up for auction in Switzerland. It was estimated of up to 10.8 million Swiss francs ($12 million) last month.
As BBC reported, it was sold to a private individual for 5.55 million Swiss francs (6.17 million US dollars).
Trinity, which is 11.6 meters long and 3.9 meters tall, has been called "one of the most spectacular T. rex skeletons in existence." The growing amount of dinosaur fossils that are ending up in private collections worries scientists.
The skeleton is known as "293 Trinity" because it was constructed from three separate T. rexes found in Wyoming and Montana during the US dinosaur era. It is composed of 293 distinct bones that were extracted from specimens between 2008 and 2013.
More than half of 293 Trinity is actual bone, which is a remarkably high amount considering that most dinosaur skeletons sold at auction are partially constructed of casts or replacements.
It was auctioned off in Zurich's Koller auction house. Dr. Hans-Jacob Siber of The Aathal Dinosaur Museum in Switzerland hailed Trinity as a "special beast" in an interview for the firm's website.
"There are only 20 or 30 good T. rex skeletons in the world and this is one of the bigger and better ones," he said.
Trinity will stay in Europe
According to the statement of the spokesperson of Koller Auktionen, Trinity will stay in Europe. Koller hopes it will be on public display, but the owner's plans are unknown at this time.
Thomas Holtz, a vertebrate paleontologist who is opposed to the selling of such specimens, was skeptical, stating that Trinity "really isn't a specimen so much as it is an art installation," as per the Guardian.
He also criticized recent auctions of key dinosaur bones and other fossils, which have brought in tens of millions of dollars.
Experts have warned that such commerce could undermine science by putting specimens in private hands and out of reach of researchers.
First in the world was actioned last November
The skeleton of Tyrannosaurus Rex was auctioned off on November 30 at Christie's in Hong Kong. According to Christie's, the dinosaur fossils were likely to fetch up to $25 million. According to Christie’s, this was the first time a T. rex skeleton had ever been sold at an auction in Asia.
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