T. Rex Skull Fetches $6.1 Million at Sotheby’s, Far Short of Expectations

A Tyrannosaurus rex skull sold Dec. 9 at Sotheby’s New York to an anonymous bidder fetched US$6.1 million, a sum that fell far short of the presale estimate.

The auction house anticipated that Maximus—the nickname of the 200-plus pound, 67 million-year-old specimen unearthed in South Dakota in 2020 and 2021—would grab between US$15 million to US$20 million.

Why the tepid reception? “The estimate was a reflection of how unique the skull is, as well as its exceptional quality, but—given that nothing quite like this has ever come to auction before—we always intended for the market to determine the ultimate price,” according to a statement from Sotheby’s provided to Penta.

The auction house noted that there was never a reserve: “While there was a published estimate, it was poised to sell to the highest bid at any value.”

The Maximus sale follows on the heels of another auction house’s ancient fossil sale that didn’t go as expected.

On Nov. 30 Christie’s Asia was set to offer a T. Rex specimen called Shen to the highest bidder. The fossil was expected to bring in US$15 million to US$25 million. The sale was cancelled after doubts were raised about the skeleton that was excavated in Montana. Once the sale was scrapped the consignor decided to loan Shen to a museum.

Whether these recent events suggest that the art market for dinosaur fossils is headed for extinction remains to be seen. But scientists regard the practice as problematic.

“We’re still learning about even well-known dinosaurs,” says Thomas R. Holtz, vertebrate palaeontologist in the Department of Geology at the University of Maryland. “One of the main issues with the sale of dinosaur or other fossils as trophies and collectible objects is that it misses out on a key aspect of the specimens—and that’s data.”

Fossils in private collections typically aren’t accessible for study, unlike ones in museums.

Australia’s commodity-rich economy recorded its weakest growth momentum since the early 1990s in the second quarter, as consumers and businesses continued to feel the impact of high interest rates, with little expectation of a reprieve from the Reserve Bank of Australia in the near term.

The economy grew 0.2% in the second quarter from the first, with annual growth running at 1.0%, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said Wednesday. The results were in line with market expectations.

It was the 11th consecutive quarter of growth, although the economy slowed sharply over the year to June 30, the ABS said.

Excluding the Covid-19 pandemic period, annual growth was the lowest since 1992, the year that included a gradual recovery from a recession in 1991.

The economy remained in a deep per capita recession, with gross domestic product per capita falling 0.4% from the previous quarter, a sixth consecutive quarterly fall, the ABS said.

A big area of weakness in the economy was household spending, which fell 0.2% from the first quarter, detracting 0.1 percentage point from GDP growth.

On a yearly basis, consumption growth came in at just 0.5% in the second quarter, well below the 1.1% figure the RBA had expected, and was broad-based.

The soft growth report comes as the RBA continues to warn that inflation remains stubbornly high, ruling out near-term interest-rate cuts.

RBA Gov. Michele Bullock said last month that near-term rate cuts aren’t being considered.

Money markets have priced in a cut at the end of this year, while most economists expect that the RBA will stand pat until early 2025.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has warned this week that high interest rates are “smashing the economy.”

Still, with income tax cuts delivered at the start of July, there are some expectations that consumers will be in a better position to spend in the third quarter, reviving the economy to some degree.

“Output has now grown at 0.2% for three consecutive quarters now. That leaves little doubt that the economy is growing well below potential,” said Abhijit Surya, economist at Capital Economics.

“But if activity does continue to disappoint, the RBA could well cut interest rates sooner,” Surya added.

Government spending rose 1.4% over the quarter, due in part to strength in social-benefits programs for health services, the ABS said.