When you’re a Hollywood celebrity with millions of extra cash to spare, you can get away with buying the weirdest things. And that’s exactly what award-winning actor Russell Crowe did one time while he was hanging out with buddy Leonardo DiCaprio.
Strange Purchase
As the 55-year-old actor revealed in an interview with Howard Stern, he once bought a rather expensive dinosaur skull from the ‘Titanic’ star when Crowe has had too much to drink. The artifact cost the actor $30,000.
As Crowe recalled, it was DiCaprio who started the conversation about the dinosaur skull. Apparently, he had his eyes set on another similar artifact that was about to come into the market and he wanted to sell the one he already had. Deciding he wants to buy the unwanted skull off his pal, Crowe asked how much money DiCaprio would sell the piece for.
DiCaprio replied that he’d be fine to sell it for the same price he originally bought it for and the deal was sealed. Crowe and DiCaprio first worked together when they co-starred in the Ridley Scott-directed action thriller, ‘Body of Lies‘, in 2008. The transaction reportedly happened around the same time year.
New Playroom Toy
Defending himself, the actor said that he actually bought the skull for his two sons who were then very fascinated with dinosaurs like most boys their age. Unfortunately, Crowe says that he couldn’t even remember what kind of dinosaur the skull belonged to now. His sons Charles and Tennyson are both in their teens today.
Meanwhile, Crowe eventually sold the valuable artifact through Sotheby’s Australia. It became one of the 226 items auctioned off in the ‘Russell Crowe: The Art of Divorce’ auction. The event was meant to help the actor raise funds to pay for his divorce with now ex-wife Danielle Spencer.
As listed in the auction house’s official site, the skull sold for $65,000 during the auction, more than double the price he bought it for over 10 years ago. In the end, the effort raised $2.8 million for the actor’s benefit. Aside from the dinosaur skull, art pieces by Australian artists and the actor’s movie memorabilia were also sold in the sale.
Skull Origins
While the actor may have forgotten the origins and details of the said dinosaur artifact, Sotheby’s did the research for him. Apparently, the skull belonged to a Mosasaur, a giant marine reptile which lived around 65 million years ago. The creature is said to be related to the monitor lizard family, to which the famous Komodo dragon also belongs in.
According to Sotheby’s, the Mosasaur was a powerful hunter that can eat a prey whole because of their flexible skull and a double-hinged jaw.
