• A 67-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton named Stan on display before its public auction at Christie's in New York. All photos: Reuters
    A 67-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton named Stan on display before its public auction at Christie's in New York. All photos: Reuters
  • It is one of the largest and most complete Tyrannosaurus skeletons discovered.
    It is one of the largest and most complete Tyrannosaurus skeletons discovered.
  • It is named after paleontologist Stan Sacrison, who found it.
    It is named after paleontologist Stan Sacrison, who found it.
  • High-quality casts of its bones are on display in museums around the world.
    High-quality casts of its bones are on display in museums around the world.
  • The fearsome skull of Stan.
    The fearsome skull of Stan.
  • Its huge teeth, designed to tear flesh.
    Its huge teeth, designed to tear flesh.
  • Stan was sold for $31.8 million in 2020.
    Stan was sold for $31.8 million in 2020.

$31.8m T-rex fossil and 7 billion-year-old meteorite go on display in Abu Dhabi


Sophie Prideaux
  • English
  • Arabic

A new exhibition at Manarat Al Saadiyat will give the public the opportunity to experience a glimpse of the artefacts that will be displayed at Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi when it opens in 2025.

Two of the museum’s star attractions, including Stan, the 67 million-year-old T-rex skeleton, and the 7 billion-year-old Murchison Meteorite, will be on show at the arts centre in Abu Dhabi until May 12, 2022.

The museum will also exhibit a specimen of the Murchison Meteorite, a shower of stones that crash-landed in Australia in 1969 and has since revealed new information about the early solar system. Photo: DCT – Abu Dhabi
The museum will also exhibit a specimen of the Murchison Meteorite, a shower of stones that crash-landed in Australia in 1969 and has since revealed new information about the early solar system. Photo: DCT – Abu Dhabi

Stan is a mostly complete 11.7 metre-long Tyrannosaurus rex, which is one of the best-preserved and most studied fossils of the predator from the Late Cretaceous geological period. Known by scientists around the world, the fossil has benefited from years of studies and has helped advance knowledge of the species globally.

The Murchison Meteorite famously crash-landed in Australia more than 40 years ago and has since revealed to scientists new information about the early solar system. The meteorite contains a huge range of organic "stardust", as well as pre-solar grains which formed over seven billion years ago — long before our current solar system existed.

The exhibition will introduce visitors to the Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi, which is due for completion in 2025.

Once open, the museum will take visitors on a 13.8 billion-year journey through time and space, and include perspective into a sustainable future for planet Earth.

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5pm: Maiden (Purebred Arabians); Dh80,000; 1,400m.
5.30pm: Maiden (PA); Dh80,00; 1,400m.
6pm: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan National Day Cup (PA); Group 3; Dh500,000; 1,600m.
6.30pm: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan National Day Cup (Thoroughbred); Listed; Dh380,000; 1,600m
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup for Private Owners Handicap (PA); Dh70,000; 1,400m.
7.30pm: Handicap (PA); Dh80,000; 1,600m

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British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.

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Education: Bachelors degree in English Literature with Social work from UAE University

As a child: Kept sweets on the window sill for workers, set aside money to pay for education of needy families

Holidays: Spends most of her days off at Senses often with her family who describe the centre as part of their life too

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2015: Golden State bt Cleveland 4-2
2014: San Antonio bt Miami 4-1
2013: Miami bt San Antonio 4-3
2012: Miami bt Oklahoma City 4-1
2011: Dallas bt Miami 4-2
2010: Los Angeles Lakers bt Boston 4-3
2009: Los Angeles Lakers bt Orlando 4-1
2008: Boston bt Los Angeles Lakers 4-2

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Updated: March 26, 2022, 12:48 PM