A dinosaur that once stood in the shadow of Tyrannosaurus rex has commanded a price to rival the biggest names in the fossil market. “Jodi,” a rare Nanotyrannus skeleton, sold for US$47.3 million at Sotheby’s New York on October 27, 2026, following a 12-minute contest involving six bidders. The result includes buyer’s and overhead premiums. According to Sotheby’s, it is the second-highest price ever paid for a dinosaur at auction, behind the US$50.1 million achieved by the T. rex “Gus” in July.

Estimated at US$6 million–US$9 million before the sale, Jodi ultimately went to a telephone bidder whose identity has not been publicly disclosed. The competition underlined how far collectors will go for an exceptional prehistoric specimen: the final price was more than five times the high estimate. Yet the fossil’s significance extends beyond the bidding. It belongs to a dinosaur whose identity has been at the centre of a long scientific debate.

A Predator With an Identity of Its Own

For decades, researchers disagreed over whether smaller, lightly built tyrannosaurs represented a separate dinosaur or simply young T. rex. Research published in 2025 supported Nanotyrannus as a distinct genus that lived alongside its much larger relative around 67 million years ago. Sotheby’s describes Jodi as the first substantial example offered at auction since that research, and one of only three substantial Nanotyrannus skeletons known to science. The specimen itself had previously appeared at Frieze Masters in London in 2023 under the name “Chomper,” presented there as a juvenile T. rex.

The skull is among Jodi’s most striking features. Sotheby’s catalogue records 53 preserved skull bones, accounting for approximately 90% of its skull bone mass, together with roughly 50 teeth at different stages of eruption. Seen close up, the open jaws and slender teeth make the animal’s predatory anatomy immediately apparent. They also show why a fossil can matter as more than a dramatic display object: individual bones preserve the anatomical evidence researchers use to distinguish one dinosaur from another.

Long Arms, Curved Claws and a Nearly 20-Foot Frame

Jodi measures approximately 19.6 feet from nose to tail and stands about 9 feet 6 inches tall on its mounting armature. The catalogue lists approximately 191 fossil bone elements from a single individual. Its long forelimbs and prominent hand claws are particularly noteworthy in a dinosaur so often compared with the famously short-armed T. rex. Fifteen of the hands’ 20 bones are represented, including all four hand claws, while a complete wishbone is another unusually well-preserved feature.

The mounted skeleton brings those surviving elements together with restored and reconstructed parts. Sotheby’s specifies that sculpted and 3D-printed elements were used in the display, and its condition account identifies reconstructed bones in both the forelimbs and hindlimbs. The complete silhouette therefore should not be mistaken for a wholly intact fossil. That distinction matters when looking at the feet and long legs as well as the skull: a convincing museum-style mount combines the evidence that survived with the work needed to present the animal as a coherent whole.

From a Montana Ranch to a Multimillion-Dollar Sale

Jodi was discovered in 2019 by rancher Jodi Pierson on her land in Montana’s Hell Creek Formation, near the town of Jordan. The site lies roughly eight miles from the discovery of the celebrated “Dueling Dinosaurs.” Her cousin, fossil excavator Clayton Phipps, joined a team that recovered the skeleton during that year’s field season. The discovery and excavation subsequently featured in the Discovery Channel series Dino Hunters in 2020, giving the specimen a public story years before this auction.

In its post-sale statement, Sotheby’s specialist Cassandra Hatton credited the excavators and preparators whose work preserved Jodi and brought the specimen to market. The result adds another major sale to a category already transformed by the US$44.6 million paid for the Stegosaurus “Apex” in 2024 and the record price for Gus this year. For collectors, Jodi combines rarity, imposing visual presence and a documented discovery. Its scientific importance also makes the question of future research access significant; the buyer’s identity and any plans for public display were not disclosed in the release.

Source: Sotheby’s.

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