Nanotyrannus skeleton "Jodi" on view at Sotheby's New York ahead of Oct. 27 auction
A nearly 70% complete Nanotyrannus skeleton found on a Montana ranch is on display at Sotheby's New York before an Oct. 27 sale estimated at $6–9 million. Paleontologists' society objects to such fossils going to private hands.
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The story, neutrally told
Mixed · 2A Nanotyrannus skeleton nicknamed "Jodi" went on public view in the lobby of Sotheby's headquarters in Manhattan on Tuesday, 13 October, ahead of an auction on Oct. 27. New York PostR “is on view in the lobby of Sotheby’s headquarters ahead of its Oct. 27 auction” Read at New York Post ↗ The Times of IndiaN “Jodi is on view in the lobby of Sotheby’s New York headquarters ahead of the October 27 auction.” Read at The Times of India ↗ Right · 1The skeleton stands 6.5 feet (2 metres) tall and stretches nearly 20 feet (6 metres) long, and is one of only three such skeletons known to exist. New York PostR “Standing 6.5 feet (2 meters) tall and stretching nearly 20 feet (6 meters) long, the rare fossil is one of only three such skeletons known to exist.” Read at New York Post ↗ Mixed · 2Sotheby's calls it the "finest and most complete" Nanotyrannus skeleton currently available; Cassandra Hatton, a Sotheby's vice chair, said it is almost 70% complete, with a virtually complete skull and a jaw with roughly 35 teeth. New York PostR “Hatton said it’s almost 70% complete, with a virtually complete skull and a jaw that has roughly 35 teeth.” Read at New York Post ↗ The Times of IndiaN “The specimen consists of 191 bones, according to reports about the sale.” Read at The Times of India ↗
Centre · 1The Times of India reports a pre-sale estimate of $6 million to $9 million, and that the specimen has 191 bones and is identified as Nanotyrannus cf. lancensis. The Times of IndiaN “Sotheby’s has given the fossil a pre-sale estimate of $6 million to $9 million.”“The fossil is identified as Nanotyrannus cf. lancensis from the Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous.” Read at The Times of India ↗ Mixed · 2Montana rancher Jodi Pierson discovered the fossil on her family's land in 2019; the Times of India places it in the Hell Creek Formation in Garfield County, near Jordan, and the AP says its excavation was the focus of the Discovery Channel series "Dino Hunters" in 2020. New York PostR “Its discovery and excavation were the focus of the Discovery Channel documentary series “Dino Hunters” in 2020.” Read at New York Post ↗ The Times of IndiaN “It was found in Montana’s Hell Creek Formation in Garfield County, near Jordan” Read at The Times of India ↗ Right · 1It was found about 8 miles (13 km) from where the "Dueling Dinosaurs" fossil, a Nanotyrannus and a Triceratops, was unearthed in 2006. That specimen, "Bloody Mary", is nearly 100% complete, is housed at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences and is not for sale; the third skeleton is at the Burpee Museum in Rockford, Illinois. New York PostR “That famous specimen, nicknamed “Bloody Mary,” is considered nearly 100% complete, but it’s housed at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences and is not for sale.”“The third Nanotyrannus skeleton is located at the Burpee Museum of Natural History in Rockford, Illinois.” Read at New York Post ↗
Right · 1The AP says new research in October 2025 concluded Nanotyrannus is a distinct genus that coexisted with T. rex, after growth rings in preserved bones showed the animals were fully grown adults, not juveniles. This ended a debate that began with the 1942 discovery of the "Cleveland Skull". New York PostR “Scientists examining the growth rings within preserved bones found the dinosaurs were fully formed adults, not juveniles.”“A decades-long scientific debate kicked off with the 1942 discovery of what’s now considered the first Nanotyrannus head” Read at New York Post ↗ Right · 1Hatton said Nanotyrannus and T. rex occupied distinct niches, likening them to a lion and a cheetah. The AP says there are more than 150 key differences: an adult Nanotyrannus was about 18 feet (5.5 metres) long, roughly half a T. rex's length, with longer forelimbs, larger hand claws and slimmer, bladelike teeth. New York PostR ““It’s like a lion and a cheetah,” Hatton explains.”“there are more than 150 key differences between the Nanotyrannus and T. rex” Read at New York Post ↗ Centre · 1The Times of India says the fossil was shown at Frieze London in 2023 as "Chomper" with a reported $20 million price tag before being reclassified and given the current estimate. The Times of IndiaN “The fossil was previously exhibited at Frieze London in 2023 under the name “Chomper.” At that time, it carried a reported price tag of $20 million” Read at The Times of India ↗
Right · 1The Society of Vertebrate Paleontology has called for significant fossils to be displayed in museums and research institutions rather than sold privately. Hatton argued that private diggers who invest their own money are crucial to preserving science, but the society's president, Stuart Sumida, called that a "blatant lie", saying no peer-reviewed study can be published on specimens not held in the public trust. New York PostR ““These people are crucial in the preservation of science,””““No peer-reviewed scientific study can be published on specimens that are not held in the public trust,” he said.” Read at New York Post ↗ Right · 1The sale follows Sotheby's record $50.1 million sale of a T. rex fossil earlier this summer. New York PostR “The latest auction comes after Sotheby’s sold a T. rex fossil for a record $50.1 million this summer.” Read at New York Post ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left0 outlets
No left outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Centre1 outlet
- Framing
- Human-interest and market explainer built around the Montana rancher's discovery and the $6–9 million estimate.
- Emphasis
- Price estimate, bone count, Frieze London history, the rancher's story.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Omits the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology's objection and Sumida's quotes, and the $50.1 million T. rex sale.
- Charged language
- “affectionately named Jodi”
- For example
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“A rare find in the form of a nearly 70 percent complete Nanotyrannus skeleton, affectionately named Jodi” — The Times of India
Right1 outlet
- Framing
- AP copy run by the New York Post: science-and-spectacle story that leads with the rarity, then sets Sotheby's against paleontologists over private sales.
- Emphasis
- Science of Nanotyrannus versus T. rex and the public-trust dispute.
- Leaves out or plays down
- Does not give the $6–9 million estimate or the Frieze London history.
- Charged language
- “blatant lie”“King of the Tyrant Lizards”
- For example
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“rejected the notion as a “blatant lie.”” — New York Post
What every side reports
- Jodi is on display in Sotheby's New York lobby ahead of an Oct. 27 auction.
- It is nearly 70% complete, about 6.5 feet tall and nearly 20 feet long, and one of three known Nanotyrannus skeletons.
- Rancher Jodi Pierson found it in Montana in 2019, about 8 miles from the Dueling Dinosaurs site.
- It has a virtually complete skull and roughly 35 teeth.
Where accounts differ
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Whether fossils like Jodi should be sold privately
- Centre
- The Times of India notes only that sales raise questions about whether specimens should remain in private hands or be accessible for public research.
- Right
- The AP copy in the New York Post quotes Sotheby's Hatton defending private diggers and the society's Sumida calling that a "blatant lie".
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Whether Nanotyrannus's status is settled
- Centre
- The Times of India says scientists for years questioned whether it was a distinct species or a juvenile T. rex, and treats the debate as ongoing.
- Right
- The AP copy says October 2025 research concluded it was a distinct genus, calling it "recently confirmed".
Sotheby's organisation
Presents Jodi as the finest and most complete Nanotyrannus available and defends private fossil hunters as essential to science.
“We absolutely need private diggers who invest their own money to go do this.”” — New York Post
Left0 articles
No coverage yet.
Centre1 article
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Montana rancher’s rare Nanotyrannus fossil goes on display ahead of $9M auction
Sympathetic Market and human-interest explainer that takes Sotheby's descriptions largely at face value.
Right1 article
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New York PostR · · via AP
Rare Nanotyrannus skeleton goes on display at NYC Sotheby’s before heading to historic auction
Mixed AP copy: vivid description of the fossil, ending with the clash between Sotheby's and the paleontologists' society.
- 14 Oct 02:47 First New York PostR Rare Nanotyrannus skeleton goes on display at NYC Sotheby’s before heading to historic auction via AP
- 15 Oct 06:30 +27h 42m The Times of IndiaN Montana rancher’s rare Nanotyrannus fossil goes on display ahead of $9M auction
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.
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