DATE WITH HISTORY Dubai to host Mideast’s first dinosaur auction
A massive 155-million-year-old dinosaur skeleton will be up for grabs for lovers of rare collectibles as Emirates Auction announced it will organize the Middle East’s first auction to sell the giant dinosaur skeleton.
The online auction will be conducted by Emirates Auction, which specializes in organizing and managing public and electronic auctions, at a starting value of 14.6 million dirhams (SR14.9 million, $4 million) and will end on Aug. 25. The 24.4-meter-long by 7-meterhigh skeleton, which dates back to the Jurassic period, is the first of its kind in the world to be installed at the Dubai Mall.
Back then the 25-year-old dinosaur weighed up to five elephants and was one of the long-necked herbivorous dinosaurs and has a tail tapering to a long, thin whiplike end to defend itself against predators.
The dinosaur belongs to the Diplodocus longus variety, deriving it from the Greek words “diplos,” meaning “double,” and “dokos” meaning “beam.”
Nearly 90 percent of the fossil’s bones are original, making it a stunning discovery in the history of palaeontology. The remains of the adult dinosaur were discovered in a sleeping position in 2008 at the Dana Quarry in the US state of Wyoming.
The auction will be an ideal opportunity for those looking for excellence to supplement their collections with a historic masterpiece rarely found around the world.
The specimen was previously displayed at the Houston Museum of Natural Science in the US state of Texas. It was sourced through Khalid Seddiq, founder of Etihad Modern Art Gallery in Abu Dhabi, and was put on permanent display at The Dubai Mall in 2014. Emirates Auction is a UAE-based auction company in the Middle East. Founded in 2004, the company specializes in automobiles, vehicle license plates, real estate and properties, asset liquidation, VIP mobile numbers, jewelry, time-sensitive items, and heavy machinery, plant and construction equipments.
Emirates Auction has achieved a number of milestones in a short span of time since its establishment, breaking 10 Guinness World Records along the way. With increasing annual sales and registered bidders across the UAE, GCC and North Africa states, Russia and other countries across the world, the auctioneer conducts over 200 online and physical auctions per year. The company is credited with significantly contributing to the development of auction concepts in the Arab world.