New York, Oct. 28 -- A rare Nanotyrannus skeleton, belonging to a smaller relative of the T. rex, has sold for USD 47.3 million at an auction at Sotheby's in New York following a fierce 12-minute bidding war among six contenders.

The specimen, named Jodi, is one of only three relatively complete Nanotyrannus skeletons known to science. Blowing well past an estimate of USD 6 to USD 9 million, the sale narrowly missed the auction record for a fossil, set in July with the sale of Gus - an exceptional T. rex skeleton that went under the hammer for USD 50.1 million, as per CNN.

Standing 9.6 feet tall and measuring 19.6 feet long, Jodi is just over half the length of Gus. The scarcity of comparable specimens is likely to have contributed to t...