Tyrannosaur auctioned despite protests from Mongolia

A near-complete tyrannosaur skeleton was auctioned for $1.05 million in New York on 20 May. The problem? The dinosaur ? Tarbosaurus bataar ? has only ever been found in Mongolia, and exporting fossils from the country has been illegal for 50 years.

Bidding at Heritage Auctions proceeded despite a temporary restraining order and pleas to stop from the Mongolian president and palaeontologists. Heritage, however, says that the sale is "conditional" on legal issues being resolved.

In another twist, the left leg of a second fossil of Tarbosaurus bataar sits on display at the Christie's sales room in London, waiting for auction tomorrow (22 May). Christie's estimates its value at between ?30,000 and ?50,000 ($47,000 to $79,000).

Illegal excavation and smuggling of fossils across international borders has been a widespread problem since the 1990s. Chinese dinosaur and bird fossils have been particularly hot commodities, openly sold outside the country despite export bans.

Mongolia has also experienced increasing looting, says Mark Norell of the American Museum of Natural History in New York, who has been working with Mongolian palaeontologists for 22 years. Some of his own excavations have been looted.

In an open letter to palaeontologists, Norell says that the Tarbosaurus skeleton and the skull of another dinosaur ? Saichania ? "clearly were excavated in Mongolia as this is the only locality in the world where these dinosaurs are known".

On Saturday, Robert Painter ? a lawyer acting for the Mongolian government ? obtained a temporary restraining order from a US district court judge halting sale of the fossil until its ownership could be resolved. Painter says copies of the restraining order were delivered to Heritage. However, the auction went ahead. Painter says Heritage claims that the sale is "contingent on a satisfactory resolution of a court proceeding dealing with this matter".

Heritage says that the fossil came from "central Asia", but has not identified the exact site, the seller, or the winning bidder. Company president Greg Rohan said in a statement: "We have legal assurances from our reputable consignors that the specimen was obtained legally. As far as we know, the Mongolian government has not produced any evidence that the piece originated in its territory."

Christie's also has not identified the current owner of its Tarbosaurus leg, but says it has been in a private collection since the early 1980s. The auction house is located just a few streets from London's Natural History Museum.

"I only became aware of [the auction] yesterday when I happened to pass the showroom and saw the specimen in the window," says Paul Barrett, a dinosaur palaeontologist at the museum. "I've written to Christie's asking about provenance in the light of the news about US sale, and also sent a message to the Mongolian Embassy in London."

"It is very likely to be from Mongolia," says Barrett. "But as there is no provenance it is not clear if it was exported from that country prior to their imposition of an export ban on fossils more than 50 years ago."

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