Ceratosaur Fossil Auctioned for $30.5 Million
On July 16th, 2025, Sotheby’s auctioned a dinosaur fossil. The fossil sold for $30.5 million, according to Sotheby’s X account. The auction house estimated the value of the juvenile Ceratosaurus to be around $4 million to $6 million in June 2025. According to Sotheby’s, this is the third most valuable dinosaur fossil ever auctioned.
Ceratosaur, a carnivorous reptile, lived in North America about 150 million years ago. This ceratosaur traveled across floodplains in what is now the American West about 90 million years ago, before non-avian dinosaurs went extinct. It is known for its dagger-like teeth and a thin nasal horn. The fossil was found by private fossil hunters in 1996 near Bone Cabin Quarry, Wyoming. Its mounted skeleton stands just over six feet tall and nearly 11 feet long. The well-preserved skull was a major highlight.
According to the New York Times, the ceratosaur was first purchased by the Museum of Ancient Life in Utah, where it was an unmounted public display, placed without any artificial support. In 2024, the museum removed the skeleton and sold it to Brock Sisson, who was a former employee turned commercial paleontologist. After buying the fossil, his company mounted it and took it to Sotheby’s to auction.
According to Cassandra Hatton, bidding lasted six minutes and six bidders Sotheby’s vice chairman and global head of science and natural history. The selling price went over seven times compared to the estimate before selling.
Ms. Hatton said, “We knew that it’s rare, that it’s important, that it’s incredibly high quality, so I’m not surprised at all that it did so well.” Ms. Haton thinks the dinosaur is rare, and it is not surprising that it sold for a lot.
However, not everybody is so happy about the sale. President of the Association of Applied Paleontological Sciences, Andre LuJan, said the high price at the auction could lead to landowners charging more for leases on sites where fossil digging occurs. This would lead to a financial challenge for commercial paleontology operators.
After “Apex,” a stegosaur that sold for $44.6 million, Mr. LuJan said it “would squeeze museums that want to work on private land and make a deal with the landowner.” This would lead to a harder time for museums to dig fossils on private lands.
On the Cretaceous adventure, from a museum display to auction, Mr. LuJan worries that museums are going to see fossils from private lands as a “cash cow.” He also said, “This was something that was accepted by everyone as hallowed ground, and now it’s been desecrated.” He means that museums are not supposed to sell their items.
Sources that helped make this article:
New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/16/science/sothebys-dinosaur-auction-ceratosaurus.html
Sotheby’s X account: https://x.com/Sothebys/status/1945493301810938199