Overview
- On Monday, November 9, the ministries of Culture and Research announced a direct acquisition that cancels the scheduled November 18 auction and transfers the holotype to the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle.
- The fossil is the holotype of Dubreuillosaurus valesdunensis, a 167‑million‑year‑old carnivorous theropod found in Conteville in 1994 and serving as the single reference specimen for its species.
- Researchers from the MNHN, CNRS and Sorbonne Université led excavations and the scientific description of the skeleton, and scientists warned that a private sale would have made the specimen inaccessible for comparative research.
- The government bought the fossil by mutual agreement with the heirs and the auction house, the purchase price was not disclosed, and the specimen will be accessioned into MNHN collections with loans planned back to Normandy.
- Keeping the holotype in a public collection preserves access for researchers and visitors, highlights gaps in French fossil ownership rules, and may prompt renewed debate about legal protections for scientific heritage.