Mystery bidder pays record $50m for Gus tyrannosaurus rex fossil
A mystery phone bidder paid a record $50.1 million for Gus, a 67-million-year-old tyrannosaurus rex fossil sold at Sotheby's in New York on Tuesday. The anonymous buyer outbid six rivals during a 10-minute bidding battle and now holds the most expensive dinosaur skeleton ever sold at auction. Researchers and collectors alike are now asking where one of the world's largest and most complete T. rex specimens will end up.
Key Takeaways
- Gus sold for $50.1 million at Sotheby's in New York, beating the prior auction record of roughly $45 million for a stegosaurus in 2024.
- The winner bid by phone and has not been identified; Sotheby's said the buyer wants to remain anonymous.
- The fossil was found in 2021 on a South Dakota ranch and named for late property owner Gary Licking, who died during the excavation.
- WIRED reported concerns that hype and wealth in the fossil market are upending science.
Who bought the tyrannosaurus rex fossil nicknamed Gus?
Nobody outside the sale knows yet. Sotheby's said the winning bidder took part by phone during Tuesday's live and online auction and asked to stay anonymous, according to NPR. The auction house did not name the buyer or reveal their location.
Seven prospective buyers competed over roughly 10 minutes before the mystery bidder prevailed. Auctioneer Phyllis Kao urged rivals on at one point: "Try a bigger bite. It's a T. rex, after all."
Why did Gus sell for far more than expected?
Sotheby's had estimated the specimen would fetch $20 million to $30 million. The final $50.1 million price nearly doubled the low end of that range and cleared the previous auction high set when a nearly complete stegosaurus sold for almost $45 million at the same house in 2024.
Before that, a Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton nicknamed Stan held the record at nearly $32 million in 2020. Sky News reported that Gus's sale made it the most valuable dinosaur fossil ever sold at auction. Sotheby's billed Gus as one of the world's largest and most complete tyrannosaurus rex fossil specimens on the market.
Where was Gus discovered and how did it get its name?
The bones were uncovered in 2021 on a ranch in South Dakota. The fossil was nicknamed Gus in honor of property owner Gary Licking, who died during the roughly five-year excavation, restoration, and mounting process, NPR reported.
The 67-million-year-old skeleton anchored Sotheby's July 14 natural history sale in New York. WIRED described the T. rex, offered as lot 20, as the centerpiece of a broader auction of assorted fossils.
What does the record sale mean for dinosaur science?
WIRED framed the auction as a flashpoint where hype and extreme wealth are upending science. The $50.1 million result for lot 20, a rare 67-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus rex, arrived amid those concerns about how fossil values are shifting.
That uncertainty sits at the heart of this sale — a record-breaking price paired with an unidentified owner and an unanswered question about where Gus goes next. For more stories where ownership and identity stay hidden, see our True Crime & Unsolved Mysteries coverage.