*Updated on July 18, 2024:

A nearly complete fossilized stegosaurus dinosaur discovered in Colorado in 2022 has been auctioned off by Sotheby's in New York.

The stegosaurus was auctioned on July 17. It had originally been estimated to be auctioned for between $4,000,000 and $6,000,000, but it ended up being sold for a whopping $44.6 million!

Sotheby's said the anonymous buyer is American and intends to look into loaning Apex to an institution in the U.S. The purchaser beat out six other bidders.

"Virtually complete, with 254 fossil bone elements (of an approximate total of 319), with additional 3D printed and sculpted elements," says Sotheby's. "Judging from the overall size and degree of the bone development it can be determined that the skeleton belonged to a large, robust adult individual, and evidence of arthritis, particularly notable in the fusion of the 4 sacral vertebrae, would indicate that it lived to an advanced age. The specimen shows no signs of combat related injuries, or evidence of post-mortem scavenging, and exhibits a number of interesting pathologies."

According to Cassandra Hatton, Sotheby's global head of science and popular culture, the stegosaurus, nicknamed Apex, stands 11 feet tall and measures 27 feet from nose to tail.

Apex was discovered in May 2022 on private land near Dinosaur, Colorado. Sotheby said the excavation was completed in October 2023.