On Oct. 27, a 19.6-foot-long (6 meters) skeleton of Nanotyrannus lancensis known as "Jodi" was sold at Sotheby's in New York for $47,255,000, far exceeding its $6 million to $9 million estimate. The buyer and seller were not identified. It was the latest in a string of multimillion-dollar dinosaur auctions, following the $50.1 million sale of a T. rex (Gus) in July and the $44.6 million sale of a Stegosaurus (Apex) in 2024.
There are three main reasons why. First: Fossils are evidence, not objects. A dinosaur's bones can reveal how it grew, moved, fed, and lived. They preserve traces of injury and disease, help reconstruct ancient ecosystems, and offer clues about the "rules of life" governing our world that scientists are still learning to interpret.
The fossil was uncovered in Montana in 2006 alongside a Triceratops. Dubbed the "Dueling Dinosaurs," it took until 2020, and an appeal in the state's Supreme Court, for the remains to be acquired by the Museum of Natural Sciences so they could be fully studied. This research provided a powerful new perspective, arguing that Nanotyrannus lancensis was a distinct dinosaur and, moreover, that a second species of Nanotyrannus once roamed the American West.
This hypothesis has big implications for the health of ecosystems before one of Earth's most severe extinction events — but it currently rests on the scant few Nanotyrannus specimens housed in public collections. Specimens like Jodi could uphold or dethrone it. Without access, we, and Jodi’s true identity, will remain in the dark.
Scientific progress depends on researchers being able to compare specimens, test hypotheses, and revisit earlier conclusions. When access relies on a private owner's permission, repeatability is not assured, and science cannot proceed. A specimen might be available today but inaccessible tomorrow. This is why access to the evidence must endure.
Three-dimensional scans and digital models are powerful tools. We use them to measure bones, compare anatomy, share information, and educate the public. But digital models capture only the most superficial aspects of a fossil's story.
The auction took place on Oct. 27, with Jodi eventually selling for around five times the top estimate. (Image credit: Ben Levine, Courtesy of Sotheby's)We cannot predict what new technologies future researchers will employ to make new discoveries from old bones, or even which questions they will ask. Technology will continue to advance, bringing analytical methods we cannot yet anticipate. A scan made today cannot guarantee that researchers will have the physical evidence needed for tomorrow's discoveries. Digital access should complement preservation of original specimens, not justify losing it.
A temporary loan is insufficient. A loaned specimen can be withdrawn, sold, or inherited by someone with different priorities, situations that are becoming increasingly common in the U.S. and abroad. By contrast, a fossil deposited in a responsible public research institution is documented, cared for, studied, and made available to future researchers and educators in perpetuity. The question is not whether people should be able to admire dinosaurs; it is whether the evidence that helps us understand them will remain available to everyone.
Exclusive to Live Science ProNor should museums consider selling scientifically important fossils to cover operating shortfalls. Collections are not ordinary financial assets to liquidate when budgets tighten. Selling an irreplaceable specimen provides a one-time payment while sacrificing future scientific potential. Museums need sustainable funding for collections care, research, and education, not pressure to trade away the very resources they exist to preserve.
There is a better way to support paleontology. Enthusiasts who want to share in the excitement of discovery can fund fieldwork and research, endow curatorial positions, strengthen museum collections, or donate important fossils to public institutions where we can all learn from them.
We should measure a dinosaur's worth not by the price it commands at auction, but by the knowledge it can help us build, and by whether we preserve that opportunity for generations to come. Earth's history belongs to all of us, not to the highest bidder.
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