Mixed feelings last week (6 Oct 2020) within the paleontological community. The famous T. rex ‘Stan’ was sold at auction for the staggering price of 31.8 million US dollars or roughly 27 million EUR. Historically this is the highest price ever to be paid for a fossil. But what to think about it all?
The sale itself was the unfortunate result of a court order imposed on the Black Hill Institute of Geological Research (BHI). In that perspective it should be made clear that it was not a voluntary move to cash in on this unique specimen, but rather a painful way to deal with internal legal problems at the BHI.
Prior to the sale, the Society of Vertebrate Palaeontology (SVP) wrote a letter in which it asked to consider not selling the famous T. rex skeleton. Well aware of the legal issues, they waited quite some time before communicating anything. Since the SVP is principally opposed to selling scientific important specimens, they knew that they weren't able to do anything about it legally. Yet this and other initiatives opposed to the sale, could not prevent the auction to take place at Christie's in New York.
So what exactly do we know: not very much, besides the fact that an anonymous buyer was convinced to put an immense amount of money on the table to buy the famous Tyrannosaurus skeleton. So, where does that leave science you might ask? Well quite frankly it leaves science a bit impotent, stranded in disbelief.
