Technology

The World of Dinosaur Bones: Auctions, Investments, and Fossil Excavations

2023-04-24 05:34:14

24.04.2023

Auctions selling dinosaur bones for millions of dollars help shed light on the world of these giant creatures. So what are the motives for buying these ancient skeletons. Is it just extravagance, or does it promise to make a lot of money?

No one would refuse to own a “Tyrannosaurus Rex”, which is known simply as “T-Rex”, as it might be used to scare neighbors or put fees for whoever wants to see it, while its price will increase over time, given that it is considered a rare thing. Does this indicate that buying ancient skeletons is a great investment?

However, investing in these ancient bones is not available to everyone, as the matter is limited to a specific group, given that it requires many conditions, especially large sums of money and the need for a large area, but there is a good thing regarding that, which is that such structures are difficult to steal given that they are large. the size.

The Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi took all of these into account when it bought it Most expensive dinosaur fossil In the world, at a value of $ 32 million, at Christie’s auction in 2020, while the fossil belongs to a 67-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus “Stan”.

The museum, which is scheduled to open in 2025, has plenty of resources to accommodate the fossil, which is regarding 12 meters long and regarding 4 meters high, in addition to consisting of 188 bones. It was found in South Dakota in 1987. Most of the 50 skeletons belonging to ” T. rex” and have been found since 1902, in natural history museums.

For the first time in Europe and the third time in the world, the Kohler Auction House in Switzerland sold a complete T-Rex skeleton of exceptional quality at auction on Tuesday (April 18, 2023), as it said in a statement. The skeleton was sold for 5.5 million Swiss francs ($6.13 million), but the price was lower than expected.

The Natural History Museum in Abu Dhabi bought the fossil of the most expensive dinosaur in the world in 2020, belonging to the “Stan” dinosaur of the “Tyrannosaurus” type.

The TRX-293 Trinity skeleton is 3.9 meters high and 11.6 meters long, and is composed of 293 bones from three Tyrannosaurus rex found between 2008 and 2023 in the US states of Montana and Wyoming.

An unnamed buyer bid the winning price of 4.8 million Swiss francs, lower than the estimate of between 5 and 8 million Swiss francs, but the total price, following adding a buyer’s premium and Kohler’s fees, increased to 5.5 million Swiss francs.

It is noteworthy that the researchers announced in 2021 the first census of the number T. rex dinosaurs They say 2.5 billion dinosaurs inhabited western North America over the course of 2.4 million years.

Dinosaur mania

It’s not the only Christie’s auction where bones can be purchased dinosaurs Expensive, but the list includes the “Sotheby’s” auction house and the “Drouet” auction house in Paris. However, two auctions late last year caused concern, with Christie’s announcing the cancellation of the controversial sale of a “Tyrannosaurus rex” skeleton in Hong Kong, amid doubts regarding the authenticity of the fossil.

Then, the industry was disappointed following a complete skeleton of a Gorgosaurus, a type of dinosaur from the “T. Rex” family, sold for regarding $6.1 million, at a much lower price than the price of a Tyrannosaurus rex that sold for $31.8 million. 2020 dollar at auction in New York.

Documentation of excavations

In addition to selling these rare bones belonging to the T-Rex dinosaurs, auction houses are trying to persuade collectors and businessmen to buy fossilized eggs, huge teeth, meteorites, minerals and even strands of woolly mammoth hair with thick hair.

Claudia Florian, head of the natural history department at Bonhams Auctions in Los Angeles, has more than 30 years of experience in the field.

Although these pieces are not as attractive dinosaur bonesHowever, it is still part of the past history and is often rare.

In an interview with DW, Claudia Florian, who is in charge of the natural history department at the Bonhams auction house in Los Angeles, USA, said that the fossils are “rare because they need certain conditions in order to reach us despite the length of time. The organism must have He was buried quickly so that he might be preserved and turned into stones.”

The Bonhams auction house has provided some advice to buyers and adventurers who want to buy these rare bones, while the quality and authenticity of these bones are among the main factors that must be taken into account, in addition to the existence of papers proving that the excavations took place in accordance with the law. Florian, who has more than 39 years of experience in this field, added that “the scarcity of bones, the extent of their completeness, and their condition affect the price of selling them at auction.”

It is worth noting that during the early years of the Corona pandemic, many people started making investments in buying non-traditional assets such as cryptocurrencies, wine, sports shoes, what is known as “non-fungible tokens” and even valuable collectibles, but following the end of the epidemic, will this continue?

beauty of the distant past

Bonhams, which now owns 14 galleries worldwide, is trying to make its way into the natural history market as its auctions fetched more than $1 billion for the first time last year, up 27% from the previous year. Nearly $4 million came from 11 private auctions. By natural history Where three of them included excavations.

In light of this, Claudia Florian seems optimistic, but she is also currently cautious regarding the fate of this market, adding, “The fossil market has witnessed great momentum and a significant rise in prices during the past three to five years due to the increase in public interest and thus the increase in demand, but the next year or two may witness stability.” At the selling level, especially in the event of an economic slowdown or recession.

In order to prove how the prices of the fossils rose, Florian said that a cave bear skull sold in New York for $ 4,750 in 2012 was sold, while a similar skull in 2022 was sold for more than 26,000 in Paris.

Fossil excavation work is tedious and time consuming

She added that a single tooth belonging to a T-Rex dinosaur was sold for more than $11,000 in 2013, but nine years later a similar tooth was sold for nearly twice that amount.

Important tips when buying fossils

Experts believe that there are guidelines that should be taken into account when investing in the purchase of fossils, whether large or small in size.

Experts say that the origins of these fossils must be researched because not all fossils are rare, and there are many more Fossils are fake While experts advise diversity in the purchase of fossils, with the preference to buy things that have a proven track record and documentation regarding the owner.

Experts point out that, however, this is not a guarantee of success in the future, but that carries with it some guidelines.

For important fossils, the right to reproduce must be obtained because owning fossils does not mean owning the right to reproduce, even though the Natural History Museum in Abu Dhabi has bought a more expensive fossil. dinosaur In the world, however, any reproductions are to be performed by the Black Hills Geological Research Institute.

Timothy Rocks / M. p