Belgian Art Foundation Buys $6 M. T. Rex Skeleton
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Loading... - Claria Pauwels
- 11 May 2023
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The Phoebus Foundation, an art foundation from Belgium, recently acquired a 67-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton for $6 million at the Koller Auction house in Zurich. The skeleton was sold along with a Soviet space suit, two plaster face masks utilized in the film The Exorcist, and other natural marvels.
Over the weekend, the foundation announced in an Instagram post that it was "very proud" to be the new owners of this unique specimen, which has quickly become one of the most memorable additions to their collection. The Phoebus Foundation boasts an eclectic collection that includes lace, colonial art from Latin America, maps, a considerable amount of items from the CoBrA art movement, and over 500 manuscripts that mention the mythical figure Reynaert the Fox.
The T. rex skeleton, known as Trinity, is the first of its kind ever to be auctioned in Europe. Comprising 50% original bone, the missing fragments are composed of three other T. rex specimens discovered in Montana and Wyoming. Trinity measures 38 feet long and nearly 13 feet tall.
Tens of thousands of people visited the auction house to view Trinity during the two and a half weeks that it was on display before the auction. Despite being the third complete T. rex skeleton to be auctioned, Trinity failed to match the previous sales. In 1997, a T. rex skeleton named Sue was sold for $8.4 million in a Sotheby's auction to the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. Another skeleton known as Stan was sold for $31.8 million in 2020 to the Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi, which is set to open in 2025. Recently, another significant T. rex skeleton named Shen was set to be auctioned by Christie's with an estimated value of $15-$20 million. However, the sale was canceled when it was discovered that Shen's head was a replica of Stan's head, leading to intellectual property complications.
Despite the fact that the sold complete T. rex skeletons will be accessible to the public, some paleontologists are of the opinion that dinosaur skeletons should not be sold in order to prevent them from being placed in private collections outside the reach of researchers. Nonetheless, the Phoebus Foundation has vowed that researchers will have access to the T. rex skeleton, similar to the other works in their collection.
Trinity the T. rex is expected to be housed in a space that is currently under construction. The Phoebus Foundation is presently restoring the Boerentoren, the first skyscraper ever built in Europe. Their new home in Antwerp will be completed in a few years' time. Until then, the foundation is exploring options for a venue that can exhibit the T. rex until construction is completed.
