Tyrannosaurus rex on the block
Tourists check out a 66-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton that was exhibited at the Venetian before going up for auction. (Isaac Brekken / For The Times)
Other prehistoric objects were on the block Saturday, besides the T. rex skeleton: fossils of a shark and a duckbill dinosaur, among others. (Isaac Brekken / For The Los Angeles Times)
Bonhams & Butterfields arranged the auction for the Tyrannosaurus rex’s anonymous owner. (Isaac Brekken / For The Los Angeles Times)
Thomas Lindgren, the curator in charge, said he got chills when he inspected the skeleton for the first time. To actually be in the presence of the most magnificent species that ever walked the planet, its almost like being in the presence of the holy grail of paleontology. (Isaac Brekken / For The Los Angeles Times)