A triceratops skull was the top lot in a sale of “extraordinary” artefacts at Christie’s London on September 5, 2013. The entire auction took just over £1.2 million ($1.9 million).
The three-horned head, which sold for £193,875 ($305,000), was uncovered on private land in Montana in an excavation that took some 3,000 man-hours. Its source, the Hell Creek Formation, has yielded dozens of such specimens during its history — particularly during a 10-year study spearheaded by Montana State University from 2000-2010, when 47 complete or partial skulls were discovered.
Paleontologist John Scannella of MSU once observed of the formation: “It is hard to walk out into the Hell Creek Formation and not stumble upon a Triceratops weathering out of a hillside.”
Other lots at the auction house included an elephant bird egg from Madagascar, pre-17th Century, which sold for £67,875 ($107,000); a giant robot which went for £17,500 ($28,000) and a slice of cake from the Queen’s wedding for £1,750 ($2,700). A large pierced sculpture of a rhino [pictured] went for £10,000 ($16,000).
The head of sale, Charlotte Young, said it was “strongly attended” with energetic bidding, both online and in the room.
