Shen the T. Rex Pulled From Upcoming Christie’s Hong Kong Auction

Christie’s Hong Kong is withdrawing its much-anticipated Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton from its Autumn Auctions, slated to occur between November 25 to December 3.

The specimen named Shen, was expected to fetch between $15 million to $25 million USD at auction, but due to recent questions raised by experts regarding the number of replica bones used, Christie’s has now noted that the it may require “further study.” Edward Lewine, a spokesperson for Christie’s said in a statement,

“After consultation with the consignor of the Tyrannosaurus rex scheduled for sale on 30 November in Hong Kong, Christie’s has decided to withdraw the lot.

The consignor has now decided to loan the specimen to a museum for public display.”

Shen was marketed as the first skeleton of the T.rex species ever to hit the auction block in Asia. However, researchers from Black Hill Institute of Geological Research have pointed out similarities between Shen and another T. rex skeleton Christie’s auctioned and sold for a record $31.8 million USD in 2020 by the name of Stan. The company’s presient, Peter Larson, noticed that the skull of Shen beared incredible similarities that were supposedly to be unique to Stan. Christie’s catolog notes that Shen only has 79 original bones, in comparison to Stan’s 190 original ones. It is said that a T.rex has around 300 to 380 bones. Christie’s claimed that the dinosaur was “54% represented by bone density,” however, the number of replica bones seem to suggest otherwise.

Christie’s Autumn Auction is moving forward on November 25 despit the T. rex setback.

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