This Miami billionaire just spent $44.6 million on the ‘most valuable fossil ever sold’
What do you do when you have more money than God?
If you’re Ken Griffin, buy a bunch of dinosaur bones for $44.6 million, that’s what.
The Citadel CEO is now the proud owner of “Apex,” a 150-million-year-old stegosaurus that sold last Wednesday at Sotheby’s New York in a record-breaking deal.
The buyer’s identity had initially been kept under wraps.
The hedge fund king, who boasts a net worth of $37.6 billion (give or take), beat out six other high rollers for his prize in the live auction. As per a Sotheby’s Instagram post, the bidders pushed the sale price to more than 11 times its estimate in just 15 minutes.
“Virtually complete,” Apex is definitely a big deal in more than ways than one. At 11 feet high and 27 feet long, it’s the largest, most intact, late-Jurassic stage stegosaurus ever recovered, according to the auction house.
As per the dinosaur’s description, Apex was a “large, robust adult” that showed no combat-related injuries and survived to an advanced age, thanks to signs of arthritis. The gender is “impossible to know,” according to a New York Times report.
The extinct reptile’s staggering price makes it also the “most valuable fossil ever sold to a private buyer,” according to Cassandra Hatton, Sotheby’s global head of science and popular culture.
“’Apex’ lived up to its name today,” she said in a statement.“I am thrilled that such an important specimen has now taken its place in history, some 150 million years since it roamed the planet. This remarkable result underscores our unwavering commitment to preserving these ancient treasures.”
The NYC house reports that the remains were excavated in 2022 on private land near the town of (yes) Dinosaur, Colorado. The exhibition-ready specimen is now “mounted in an aggressive attack pose.”
The relic could likely fit in Griffin’s sprawling Indian Creek Village mansion to be a cool topic of cocktail party conversation, but he reportedly has loftier plans to loan it to various institutions around the U.S.
“Apex was born in America and is going to stay in America!” the local financier reportedly said following the momentous sale, according to CBS News’ MoneyWatch.
