The skull of a 66 million-year-old giant Triceratops fossil could soon belong to a lucky dinosaur enthusiast, that is, if they have an estimated 1.2 million euros $1.4 million to spare.
The specimen, dubbed Big John, has a skull 3.62 meters 8 feet 7 inches wide and 2 meters 6 feet 7 inches long, while his two largest horns are 1.1 meters 3 feet 7 inches long and more than 30 centimeters 11.8 inches in the base and can withstand 16 tons of pressure, according to auctioneers Binoche & Giquello.
The dinosaur lived on Laramidia, an island continent that stretched from present day North Dakota to Mexico and perished in an ancient flood plain known as the Hell Creek Formation in South Dakota in May 2014, where he was discovered in May 2014 by geologist Walter W. Stein Bill. The dinosaur was restored a year later and excavated in Italy, the company said in a statement.
The creature's remains were preserved in mud, and the skeleton is more than 60% complete with a 75% complete skull. But Big John bears the wounds of a difficult life, with a laceration in his collar from an altercation with a smaller triceratops, which the auctioneers said was due to territorial defense or courtship of a mate.
The herbivorous animals could reach up to 5,500 kilograms of weight and 9 meters 29 feet in length.
At 8 meters, Big John is the biggest Triceratops specimen ever found, the auctioneers said.
The creatures roamed the earth during the Middle Cretaceous Period, which began some 68 - 66 million years ago in what is now the modern day USA.
Big John is expected to fetch between 1.2 million euros $1.4 million and 1.5 million euros $1.7 million at auction on Oct 21 in the Drouot Auction House in Paris.
This is not the first time a dinosaur skeleton was on sale.
The SVP claimed: Fossil specimens can be lost to science if they are sold into private hands. The organization added: Even if made open to scientists, the information contained within future specimens and privately owned access cannot be guaranteed, and therefore verification of scientific claims the essence of scientific progress cannot be performed.