Tyrannosaurus Sue: The Extraordinary Saga of the Largest, Most Fought Over T. Rex Ever Found - Softcover

Steve Fiffer

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0965088537 ISBN 13: 9780965088534

Publisher: W. H. Freeman and Company, 2000

Synopsis

Over 65 million years ago in what is now South Dakota, a battle-scarred Tyrannosaurus rex matriarch -- perhaps mortally wounded in a ferocious fight -- fell into the riverbed and died. In 1990 her skeleton was found, virtually complete, in what many have called the most spectacular dinosaur fossil discovery to date.

And then another battle began -- a "survival of the fittest" free-for-all involving commercial dinosaur hunters, gun-toting law officers, an ambitious federal prosecutor, a Native American tribe, jealous academics, an enterprising auction house, major museums, and corporate giants, all making their claim for the dinosaur named Sue. Before it was over, there would be claims and counterclaims; charges of checkbook-polluted science, criminal larceny, and vengeful prosecutions; and devastating prison terms. And the gavel would come down on the largest-ever ($8.36 million) auction price tag for a fossil, paid by Chicago's Field Museum, with help from Disney and McDonald's.

Capturing the whole range of characters and issues embroiled in the fight for Sue, Steve Fiffer communicates both the excitement over Sue's discovery and the motivations, maneuverings, and absurdities of the various forces attempting to control her destiny.

About this title

Review

How much is that T. Rex in the window? Journalist Steve Fiffer looks at the most contentious paleontological find ever in Tyrannosaurus Sue. This scientific, sociological, and legal study is entertaining and insightful, highlighting the personalities of the researchers, attorneys, and tribal and federal authorities who struggled for years over the ownership rights to the best-preserved Rex specimen yet found. From its discovery in South Dakota in 1990 by Susan Hendrickson and Peter Larson through the tortuous court cases to decide its fate to the final auction at Sotheby's, Fiffer finds just the right words to describe the action, a difficult task given the conflicting reports of contesting witnesses. Professional jealousy and academic elitism (or concern for valuable scientific material and Indian property rights) led to accusations of illegal collecting and the seizure of the skeleton by federal agents shortly after its move to Larson's Black Hills Institute. Suits, countersuits, and indictments escalated the struggle into an all-out war with vast sums of money and professional reputations at stake. In the end, Larson was imprisoned as an example to illegal collectors despite his sincere belief that he had worked within the law, and Sue was awarded to property owner Maurice Williams and purchased for $8 million by Chicago's Field Museum with the assistance of the McDonald's and Disney corporations. Tyrannosaurus Sue is a riveting tale, well-written and just unsettling enough to provoke thought and discussion. --Rob Lightner

From the Back Cover

"A blow-by-blow account for control of the world's most famous dinosaur--real tour de force!"
--Kenneth Carpenter, Department of Earth Sciences, Denver Museum of Natural History

"For more than 65 million years, Sue rested in her Cretaceous coffin. She awoke to a world of legal battles and rivalry as fierce in their way as anything she faced when alive. Steve Fiffer tells her compelling story as well as it could be told. This book is a must for anyone with even the slightest interest in the interplay between science and the law."
--Dr. James L. Powell, President and Director, Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History

"A century after the Great Bone Wars of Cope and Marsh hit the headlines, Sue emerged from the earth--only to become embroiled in another fin de siecle fossil fiasco. Steve Fiffer relates Sue's fascinating story with flair, and with sensitivity to those who took part in the saga."
--Blake Edgar, editor of Dinosaur Digs and co-author of From Lucy to Language

"Steve Fiffer has written a lively, must-read book that untangles the complexities of the 'story of Sue' for all of those interested in something that can never happen again. Or could it?"
--Philip J. Currie, Curator of Dinosaurs at the Royall Tyrrell Museum of Palaentology in Alberta

About this edition

• Publisher: W. H. Freeman and Company
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0965088537
• ISBN 13: 9780965088534
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 245