Tyrannosaurus dinosaur skeleton sold amid controversy
A row has broken out over the sale
of a dinosaur skeleton at auction in the US.
The rare Tyrannosaurus Bataar, seven
metres long (23ft), was bought by an anonymous bidder for more than $1m
(£630,000) in New York.
The sale went ahead despite protests
from the Mongolian president.
Elbegdorj Tsakhia says the skeleton,
unearthed in the Gobi Desert, came from Mongolia and that exporting fossils
found in the country is illegal.
The auctioneers, Heritage Auctions,
say the specimen was imported legally. A restraining court order in the name of
Mr Tsakhia was put on the sale.
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Tyrannosaurus Bataar is an Asian
cousin of the meat-eating Tyrannosaurus Rex
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Tyrannosaurus Bataar is an Asian
cousin of the meat-eating Tyrannosaurus Rex.
The skeleton in New York is thought
to be one of the most complete and well preserved ever discovered, says the
BBC's Jonathan Blake in Washington.
"When it comes to dinosaurs,
number one, dinosaurs in general are extremely rare. But the rarest of the
dinosaurs are the carnivores, the meat eaters - the top of the food chain if
you will," David Herskowitz, director of natural history at Heritage
Auctions, told APTV.
"And, of all the meat eaters
that are out there, the most famous are the Tyrannosaurids. They are the most
desirable, but they are the most elusive. They are the most difficult to find.
Even though they are so big, there are not that many of them around."
Found about seven years ago in the
Gobi Desert, the T-Bataar remained in storage in England.
The T-bataar was slightly smaller
and had longer arms than its cousin, Mr Herskowitz said.
This is the second Tyrannosaurid to
be sold at auction, says Mr Herskowitz. The first was a T-rex named Sue sold in
1997 for more than $8m.
Lawyers for the auction house say
the sale did not break any US laws - but it will not be confirmed until it has
been approved by a US court.
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