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Ken Griffin, the CEO of Citadel hedge fund, has been revealed as the buyer who spent a record-breaking $44.6 million on a stegosaurus fossil at a recent auction, according to a source familiar with the purchase. The skeleton, known as Apex, is believed to be 150 million years old and is the largest stegosaurus ever discovered, as said by the auction house.
Griffin emerged victorious in a 15-minute bidding war against six other competitors, placing his bid over the phone while a live audience cheered as the price escalated.After the sale, he declared, “Apex was born in America and is going to stay in America,” as reported by The Wall Street Journal, which first disclosed Griffin as the buyer.
The hedge fund chief, who is a frequent donor to the Republican party, has an estimated net worth of $37.8 billion, according to Forbes. He plans to explore the possibility of loaning the specimen to a US institution, as per the source who spoke to AFP.
Griffin has a history of collaborating with museums. In 2021, he purchased a first-edition copy of the US Constitution for $43.2 million and subsequently loaned it to the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Arkansas. Additionally, he contributed $16.5 million to support a dinosaur exhibit at Chicago’s Field Museum in 2018.
The recently acquired skeleton stands an impressive 11 feet (3.3 meters) tall and 27 feet (8.2 meters) long, and is nearly complete, with 254 bones out of an estimated total of 319.
In recent years, dinosaur remains have become highly sought-after items, with palaeontologists expressing concern that museums are being outbid by private collectors.
In 2020, a Tyrannosaurus Rex skeleton named “Stan” was sold at auction, setting the previous record for a dinosaur skeleton sale at $31.8 million.
The stegosaurus skeleton known as Apex is significantly larger than the most complete stegosaurus specimen ever publicly displayed. That specimen, called “Sophie,” is currently on exhibit at London’s Natural History Museum. Apex’s size exceeds Sophie’s by an impressive 30 per cent.
Griffin emerged victorious in a 15-minute bidding war against six other competitors, placing his bid over the phone while a live audience cheered as the price escalated.After the sale, he declared, “Apex was born in America and is going to stay in America,” as reported by The Wall Street Journal, which first disclosed Griffin as the buyer.
The hedge fund chief, who is a frequent donor to the Republican party, has an estimated net worth of $37.8 billion, according to Forbes. He plans to explore the possibility of loaning the specimen to a US institution, as per the source who spoke to AFP.
Griffin has a history of collaborating with museums. In 2021, he purchased a first-edition copy of the US Constitution for $43.2 million and subsequently loaned it to the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Arkansas. Additionally, he contributed $16.5 million to support a dinosaur exhibit at Chicago’s Field Museum in 2018.
The recently acquired skeleton stands an impressive 11 feet (3.3 meters) tall and 27 feet (8.2 meters) long, and is nearly complete, with 254 bones out of an estimated total of 319.
In recent years, dinosaur remains have become highly sought-after items, with palaeontologists expressing concern that museums are being outbid by private collectors.
In 2020, a Tyrannosaurus Rex skeleton named “Stan” was sold at auction, setting the previous record for a dinosaur skeleton sale at $31.8 million.
The stegosaurus skeleton known as Apex is significantly larger than the most complete stegosaurus specimen ever publicly displayed. That specimen, called “Sophie,” is currently on exhibit at London’s Natural History Museum. Apex’s size exceeds Sophie’s by an impressive 30 per cent.
