On Saturday, 28 May, the German auction house Auctionata will offer a skeleton of a Jurassic-period stegosaurus in its Nature at Home—Prehistoric Fossils and Minerals sale. The approximately 150million-year-old, 7m-long skeleton (est €1.2m-€2.4m) is said to be the best known example of this type of dinosaur, made up of 90% original bone and with its tail spikes, vertebra and back plates nearly complete.
The prehistoric skeleton was discovered in the Eastern Bighorn Mountains in Wyoming, US in 2010. After its excavation in 2011, it was transported to the Redgallery in Hamburg, Germany, for preservation and mounting, and it has only been shown there since. The clearly visible anchor points of the back plates are “what makes this finding unique and of high scientific interest”, an Auctionata spokeswoman told The Art Newspaper.
The specimen also shows battle scars, which were likely the result of an attack from above by a theropod dinosaur. “Evidently, the stegosaurus was handicapped through a limb deformation but survived the attack for a reasonable amount of time”, the spokeswoman added. “The scars also prove beyond any doubt that the tail of the stegosaurus was used as a defensive weapon.”
The skeleton is one of 100 objects that will be offered in the sale, which are described in a press release as “natural works of art”. Other highlights include a pair of large amethyst geodes from Brazil (starting bid €38,000) and scallop shells from the South of France (starting bid €4,500). The auction will be held at Redgallery and livestreamed to bidders worldwide.