"Uncommon Dinosaur 'Barry' to Be Auctioned in Paris"

An exceptionally well-preserved dinosaur skeleton, believed to be almost complete, will be auctioned in Paris next month. The camptosaurus, estimated to be 150 million years old, was initially discovered in the US in the 1990s by paleontologist Barry James. The fossil was named after him and is said to be in an extremely well-preserved state. The auction, happening on 20th October at Hotel Drouot, is expected to fetch a price of up to €1.2 million ($1.2 million, £970,000). The dinosaur, known as Barry, dates back to the late Jurassic period and has undergone two restorations, one in 2000 and another in 2022. It stands at a height of 2.1 meters (6.9 feet) and measures 5 meters (16.4 feet) in length. Alexandre Giquello from the auction house Hotel Drouot expressed that it is rare to find a dinosaur skeleton in such a well-preserved condition. He mentioned that the skull is 90% complete, while the rest of the dinosaur is 80% intact. Sales of dinosaur fossils are considered uncommon, with only a small number occurring globally each year. However, concerns have been raised about these valuable specimens ending up in the hands of private collectors. In April, a Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton was sold at auction in Europe for the first time. Professor Steve Brusatte, a dinosaur expert from Edinburgh University, expressed worry about these scientifically valuable skeletons disappearing into private collections.