Discover the Ultimate Dinosaur Skeleton – Perfect for Enthusiasts and Collectors!

Next month, an extraordinary dinosaur skull, one of the most complete ever found, will be auctioned alongside the rest of the 150-million-year-old Camptosaurus bones. These fossil auctions are infrequent, occurring only a few times each year worldwide, and have raised concerns about the removal of fossils from public and scientific access, as reported by the BBC. This particular Camptosaurus skeleton, named Barry after the paleontologist Barry James who discovered it in Wyoming during the 1990s, is almost fully intact and exceptionally well preserved, according to the outlet.

Alexandre Giquello, president of the Paris auction house Hotel Drouot, stated that the specimen, measuring 7 feet tall and 16 feet long, is “one of the most complete dinosaurs ever auctioned,” and that the skull is 90% complete while the rest of the dinosaur is 80% complete. The auction is set to take place on October 20 and it is estimated that the specimen could sell for up to $1.2 million, a figure that has stirred controversy. The Economist previously reported that the increasing demand for dinosaur specimens from private collectors since they began selling for millions of dollars at auction in 2018 has raised concerns about public institutions losing access to valuable discoveries.

However, if Barry is acquired by a private collector, it is unlikely to alter the current situation significantly. According to Barron’s, the fossil has been held in a private collection in Colorado since shortly after its discovery in Wyoming’s Morrison Formation. Last year, experts from the Italian company Zoic, in collaboration with scientists from the University of Bologna, purchased the specimen and embarked on an extensive reconstruction project. The auction house states, “Zoic meticulously disassembled, cleaned, and cataloged the original bones of the specimen to complete its reconstruction according to current scientific standards.” (Read more dinosaur stories.)