T-rex skeleton in Singapore is a first for Asia but experts have got a bone to pick about ‘harmful’ auctions
- Dubbed Shen, meaning godlike, the 1,400kg frame of about 80 bones will be on display for three days before being shipped to Hong Kong to be sold in November
- But the trend for prehistoric auction lots has some experts concerned, they say the trend is ‘bad news for science’ because the remains belong in museums
Dinosaur fans got a glimpse of a Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton as it went on display in Singapore on Friday before an auction next month, as experts slammed the big-money bone trade as “harmful to science”.
The 1,400kg frame, composed of about 80 bones, will be the first T-rex skeleton auctioned in Asia, according to Christie’s, which has not given an estimate for the lot.
Dubbed Shen, meaning godlike, it will be on display for three days before being shipped to Hong Kong to be sold in November.
“None of the 20 T-Rex that exist in the world is owned by either an Asian institution or an Asian collector”, said Francis Belin, president of Christie’s Asia-Pacific. “We really wish that Shen will find a new home among our Asian collectors here”.
The adult dino, which stands 4.6 metres tall and 12 metres long, is thought to be male. It was excavated from private land in the Hells Creek Formation in Montana in the United States in 2020.
“I’ve never seen a real-life fossil before … It makes me feel in awe because it’s quite majestic,” said Lauren Lim, 33, who went to view the exhibit.