Ultra-rich buyers are snapping up fossils — and scientists warn of a research cost
One of the UK's finest fossil collections has been sold abroad and is now displayed at a museum in Abu Dhabi, a move experts call a loss for the nation. Scientists warn that rising prices are pricing domestic museums out of the fossil market.
One of the United Kingdom's most significant fossil collections has been sold to overseas buyers, a development experts describe as a loss for the country's scientific and cultural heritage. The collection, originally gathered along Dorset's Jurassic Coast, is now on display at the Natural History Museum in Abu Dhabi.
A growing private market
Fossils from dinosaurs and other ancient creatures have increasingly been sold to private collectors for large sums of money in recent years. This trend worries scientists, who say domestic museums in the UK are increasingly unable to compete with wealthy private buyers at auctions and in direct sales.
What it means for research
When important specimens end up in private hands or are moved abroad, researchers can lose access to them for study. That means scientists risk missing out on chances to make new observations and discoveries based on these fossils. Guardian science correspondent Nicola Davis discusses how fossils have become big business and what this could mean for the future of scientific research.
