Gus the T. Rex Heads to Sotheby’s Auction with a $19 Million Opening Bid

Gus, a 63%-complete 38-foot Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton unearthed on a South Dakota ranch, goes to Sotheby’s in New York for auction on July 14 with a $19 million starting bid and an estimated value of $20–$30 million, potentially the highest private dinosaur- fossil price yet. Reconstructed from 183 bones after years of work by Theropoda Expeditions, the fossil’s sale sparks debate over private ownership of priceless relics, even as Sotheby’s says these auctions can help fund paleontology and recover fossils that might otherwise be lost.