A large dinosaur skeleton has sold for $44.6m (£34m) at a Sotheby’s auction in New York City, setting a record for the most ever paid for a fossil. The plant-eating stegosaurus, nicknamed Apex, measures 11ft (3.4m) tall and 27ft long from nose to tail. Sotheby’s described it as “one of the most complete skeletons ever found.” The skeleton was purchased by an anonymous buyer, who commented, “Apex was born in America and is going to stay in America,” suggesting it may be loaned to a US institution. Apex was discovered by a palaeontologist in 2022 near the town of Dinosaur in Colorado.

“The finest stegosaurus to appear at auction, ‘Apex,’ has made history, selling for $44.6 million at Sotheby’s and becoming the most valuable fossil ever sold at auction,” Sotheby’s announced. The fossil exceeded its pre-sale estimates by more than 11 times, drawing applause after 15 minutes of bidding. Seven buyers participated in the auction for the largest stegosaurus fossil ever found.

Apex was discovered by Jason Cooper, a professional fossil hunter, who named it Apex due to its impressive size, suggesting it was a dominant animal in its environment. The stegosaurus is believed to have lived about 150 million years ago during the Late Jurassic Period.

The previous record for a dinosaur fossil sale was set in 2020 when a Tyrannosaurus Rex named Stan sold for $31.8 million.