Dinosaur known as 'Barry' goes on sale in rare Paris auction

An unusually well-preserved dinosaur skeleton, a Camptosaurus known as Barry that dates from the late Jurassic period some 150 million years ago, will go under the hammer in Paris next month.

The dinosaur, which was first discovered in the 1990s in the US state of Wyoming, was initially restored in 2000 by palaeontologist Barry James, from whom it got its name.

Italian laboratory Zoic, which acquired Barry last year, has done further restoration work on the skeleton, which is 2.10 metres tall and 5 metres long.

"It is an extremely well-preserved specimen, which is quite rare," said Alexandre Giquello, from Paris auction house Hotel Drouot where the sale will take place.

"To take the example of its skull, the skull is complete at 90 per cent and the rest of the dinosaur (skeleton) is complete at 80 per cent," he said.

Dinosaur specimens on the art market remain rare, with no more than a couple of sales a year worldwide, Giquello said.

The skeleton, which will be shown to the public in mid-October before the sale, is expected to fetch up to 1.2 million euros ($1.28 million).