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A fossilized Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton nicknamed “Gus” sold for a record $50.1 million, including fees, at a Sotheby’s auction in New York on Tuesday. The transaction cements the apex predator as the most valuable fossil ever sold at auction.
The sale came in far above the fossil’s pre-auction estimate of between $20 million and $30 million and moved past the previous record set by “Apex,” a stegosaurus skeleton that sold for $44.6 million at Sotheby’s in 2024.
Gus is one of the largest fossilized T. rex skeletons ever uncovered, measuring approximately 38 feet, or 11.5 meters, from head to tail and standing about 12.5 feet, or 3.8 meters, tall.
According to Sotheby’s auction description, the skeleton includes 183 fossilized bone elements and is approximately 61% complete by bone count. Those bones make up an estimated 75% to 80% of the animal’s total bone mass, placing Gus among the most complete T. rex specimens ever found.
Its skull measures about 54 inches, or 137 centimeters, while its femur is approximately 50 inches, or 128 centimeters, long.
The fossil was dug up between 2021 and 2023 in the Hell Creek Formation in Harding County, South Dakota, a geological area where the remains were found on privately owned land.
It was nicknamed Gus after the owner of the property where it was discovered. The skeleton is believed to be approximately 67 million years old.
By reaching $50.1 million, Gus surpassed the $44.6 million paid for Apex in 2024 and took over as the world’s most expensive fossil sold at auction.
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