Bones under the hammer ... £30k to bring Nessie back home

Fans of world-famous monster bid to put skeleton on display

For years she has only given fleeting – and inconclusive – glimpses of herself.

Now would-be Nessie spotters could have something more tangible to look at, if a plan to buy a 205million-yearold skeleton comes

off. A crowdfunding scheme is being set up to bid for the rare skeleton of a plesiosaur – the prehistoric creature which most closely resembles modern sightings of the Loch Ness Monster.

The plan to buy the skeleton – and put it on permanent display on the banks of Loch Ness – comes from Gary Campbell, the recorder and keeper of the Official Loch Ness Monster Sightings Register.

“It would be like returning Nessie home – because the most commonly held view of what she is, is a plesiosaur, or a descendant of a plesiosaur,” he said.

“I am hoping to launch a crowdfunder to mount a bid and will be actively talking to interested parties about doing so and raising the funds.

“A crowdfunder would also see the public actively involved in bringing Nessie home.”

If the plan is successful, the skeleton would be displayed in a vandal-proof clear case at a point around the loch. “People would then be able to imagine Nessie on the water as they look through the glass,” said Gary.

“It would have anti-theft measures, but who would want to steal a 10ft-long dinosaur?

“It would be an attraction, a public information point and a celebration of one of the world’s great mysteries.”

Dores, a lochside village popular with tourists where there has already been a Nessie sighting this year, would be the perfect location for the attraction, according to the Nessie enthusiast.

“It has been recognised that the Nessie we see today isn’t some long-lost dinosaur but there’s every possibility that she’s descended from creatures like the one that’s now for sale,” said Gary.