The fate of the giant trichotillomania “Big John” was played at an auction in Paris.

The “Big John” skeleton of the 8-meter-long, 66-million-year-old, largest trichotillomania was auctioned off in Paris, France on Thursday.

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Estimated to be between 1.2 and 1.5 million euros, Triserodops is put up for auction by the famous French house Trout every year during a joint sale of impressive landscape models. The auction starts at 1 million euros and will take place under the tutelage of Master Gicello’s hammer and paleontologist Iacobo Briano.

Unique size, the “Big John” skeleton is over 60% (75% for the skull). It was discovered in 2014 in the United States by geologist Walter W. Stein Bill, updated in South Dakota, later referred to the AFP as “respecting the rules of Paleontology” by a specialized laboratory in Trieste, Italy. Gigello.

“Big John” lived in the Cretaceous period, late in the last part of the dinosaur era. He originated in the extinct island-continent of Laramidia, which stretches from present-day Alaska to Mexico. Triceratops died in the flood, which explains its good protection, the skeleton is buried in the mud, a sediment without biological activity.

Collaborations were carried out with the Italian universities of Bologna and Cieti during the restoration to allow researchers to view the fossil. Their analyzes made it possible to attest to the exceptional size of animal skulls in particular, 5 to 10% larger than the 40 trichotillomania skulls already described by the scientific community.

Registration size

Researchers were also able to read a trace of decay near the skull, which attests to the blow to the horn received by “Big John” during a fight with an ally. Trichoderma has two long anterior horns, which are strong.

The sale of this skeleton marks the fourteenth chapter of interest surrounding this type of fossil. The dinosaur skeletons put up for sale in recent years have reached record levels of grief for research centers and public museums.

However, Master Gigello wants to be optimistic about the possibility of showing this exceptional skeleton to the public: “almost half” of the people interested in selling “Big John” expressed their desire to reveal it. Museum. “We don’t know what others want to do,” he stressed.

The Trudeau mansion has already undergone several auctions: between 2018 and 2020 two fossil alarms were sold for 1.4 and 3 million euros, respectively. However, by 2020, many of the dinosaurs offered in Paris will not be sold. Those found, the prices requested by the stock seller were not met.

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