'Since then, the diversity of buyers has really gone up with corporations and private individuals getting involved, driving prices higher. 'Prior to Jurassic Park, the only people really buying dinosaurs from collectors were museums,' explains Paul. Actors Nicholas Cage and Leonardo DiCaprio fought an auction battle over a Tyrannosaurus bataar skull in 2007, while countless other specimens are held by businesses, institutes and private collectors across the world. Since then, interest has remained more or less at a high level with occasional peaks for new discoveries or films.'Д«ig business in the entertainment world means that for the wealthy owning a dinosaur started to become a new status symbol. That first wave culminated in Jurassic Park, and that itself marked another uptick in interest for a mass media audience. 'From the 1970s onwards, we have what is called the 'dinosaur renaissance' where the link between birds and dinosaurs was re-established. 'They were museum objects without a lot of cutting-edge research and were regarded as somewhat dull. 'For most of the middle part of the twentieth century, dinosaurs were not particularly popular,' Paul says. Over time, dinosaurs became something of a scientific curiosity that researchers weren't that interested in. Buyers included institutions such as the British Museum, as well as amateur palaeontologists with money to spare.ДЄt the time, they were mostly interested in the specimens for their scientific value, with different scientists looking to name as many species as possible. Some of the earliest fossil collectors and palaeontologists, such as Mary Anning, sold their finds to make a living in the 1800s. The sale of dinosaur bones is, however, nothing new. 'There's not really a consensus at the moment, and until there is, everything will be judged on a case-by-case basis.' 'None of these questions have a simple answer, and many people take up very polarised positions on it,' Paul says. However, even this compromise can be controversial among scientists. Some scientists have suggested that private owners should be encouraged to leave their finds to museums after their death, with a long-term plan drawn up when a specimen is excavated.

But it's another matter for larger specimens.' 'No-one is really saying people shouldn't pick up an ammonite or belemnite from the beach as it provides a connection between people and fossils that gets them interested in palaeontology. 'I think there is a place for commercial dealers and private collectors,' Paul says, 'but there is a big debate over what that actually is. Scientific bodies like the Society for Vertebrate Palaeontologists tend to take up the middle ground, allowing for a commercial trade in specimens provided that they should be put into the care of public institutions. 'The pushback to that, and I'm in that camp, is that if they make a mistake when studying these specimens then it can lead to problems that could mislead scientists forever.' On the other hand, some scientists argue that it's a duty to research a fossil and put out information on it to add to the overall body of science. 'Some scientists think that a privately owned fossil should never be studied or bought, as if the specimen later disappears then any findings based on it can't be verified. 'There are a lot of differing opinions within the profession,' Paul says. Museums also face questions over whether to display private specimens that can bring in much needed revenue.

While there is the potential to gain important scientific information, research increases the value of a specimen so it can later be sold for a higher price. If you don't have the original specimen, you lose the potential for future research.'Дebate also rages over whether scientists should engage with collectors and private owners at all. There are a sophisticated range of geochemical techniques now that weren't available 15 years ago. In my career, we've gone from having CT scans as something that only happens on broken legs to something that is routinely done on fossils. 'In some cases that could work, but you lose the futureproofing ability. 'On a dig, you could image the entire site, CT and 3D scan the specimen and take a few samples for other tests.

'As technology has got better, some scientists argue that the actual specimen is less important now,' Paul explains. While casts of high-quality specimens are often available, there are drawbacks.

The rest are only known from a handful of bones and teeth, which makes it much more difficult to find out how they lived. However, only around one in five dinosaur species are known from a mostly complete specimen. Dinosaurs bones can tell us a lot about ancient species and the more complete they are, the more scientists can learn.

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