Sotheby’s to Auction a Ceratosaurus, With Millions and More on the Line
The New York TimesMonday, June 16, 2025 at 3:15:28 PM
Sotheby’s is putting a rare, 150-million-year-old Ceratosaurus skeleton up for auction, with an eye-popping estimate of up to $6 million. While dinosaur enthusiasts and deep-pocketed collectors might see this as a thrilling chance to own a piece of prehistoric history, some paleontologists are sounding the alarm. They argue that high-profile auctions like this are fueling a speculative fossil market, potentially pricing researchers out of critical scientific specimens.
Editor’s Note: This isn’t just about a fancy dinosaur skeleton going to the highest bidder—it’s part of a bigger debate over who should control these irreplaceable pieces of Earth’s past. When fossils become luxury items, scientists worry they’ll vanish into private collections instead of museums or labs where they can be studied. For context, this isn’t Sotheby’s first dino sale (remember the $12 million T. rex "Stan"?), and each auction sets a precedent that could reshape how fossils are bought, sold, and preserved.
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