The Gorgosaurus is a species of dinosaur cousin of the T. rex and lived more than 77 million years ago, will soon be auctioned by Sotheby’s in New York, amidst the craze of buyers for such relics.

The nearly 3-meter-high, 6.7-meter-long skeleton, discovered in 2018 in the Judith River geological formation in Montana and still in private hands since then, is estimated to fetch between USD 5 million and USD 8 million by the auction house.

“Almost all the Gorgosaurus specimens that have been found are in museums. This is the only one that can be purchased,” explained Cassandra Hatton, head of science and pop culture at Sotheby’s, on Tuesday, July 5, claiming a first for this species.

Gorgosaurus (like the T-Rex, from the family Tyrannosauridae, Gorgosaurus (“ferocious lizard”) lived in the Late Cretaceous period and became extinct about 77 million years ago. The specimen, which Sotheby’s claims is in “remarkable condition,” will be on display at the company’s New York offices beginning July 21 and sold a week later.

Proposals for the sale of dinosaur skeletons now regularly enliven auction evenings, even if it means frustrating paleontologists, who see one less chance to exhibit them in museums.

In May, still in New York but at Christie’s, a Deinonychus antirrhopus skeleton, which inspired the Velociraptor in Steven Spielberg’s film Jurassic Park (1993), was sold for 12.4 million USD, including fees, to an Asian client.

This price, more than double its estimate, making it the second most expensive auction for a dinosaur skeleton, far from the big star, a Tyrannosaurus Rex that sold in 2020 for 31.8 million USD