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King Charles III and Queen Camilla to Welcome South Korea’s President for State Visit in November 

Britain's King Charles III and Queen Camilla pose at a plaque named after his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II at the Flower Market Thursday, Sept. 21, 2023 in Paris. (AP)
Britain's King Charles III and Queen Camilla pose at a plaque named after his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II at the Flower Market Thursday, Sept. 21, 2023 in Paris. (AP)
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King Charles III and Queen Camilla to Welcome South Korea’s President for State Visit in November 

Britain's King Charles III and Queen Camilla pose at a plaque named after his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II at the Flower Market Thursday, Sept. 21, 2023 in Paris. (AP)
Britain's King Charles III and Queen Camilla pose at a plaque named after his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II at the Flower Market Thursday, Sept. 21, 2023 in Paris. (AP)

King Charles III and Queen Camilla will welcome the president of South Korea for a state visit to the UK in November, the second such visit of the monarch’s reign.

The king and queen will host Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife, Kim Keon Hee, at Buckingham Palace on an as yet unspecified date in November, the palace said Tuesday.

Yoon, a conservative former prosecutor, has sought to strengthen South Korea’s military alliance with the United States, drawing an angry response from North Korea.

But Yoon, 62, has also showed the lighter side of his character. During a state dinner at the White House in April, he belted out the opening verse of one of his favorite songs, the 1970s folk-rock classic “American Pie,” at the request of President Joe Biden.

A state banquet at Buckingham Palace is unlikely to feature a moment of impromptu song. Such events are traditionally more composed affairs featuring tiaras, toasts and dinner for around 150 guests, with a string orchestra usually providing the musical backdrop.

State visits normally begin with a welcome from the king and other members of the royal family, with the visitors inspecting the guard of honor then riding to the palace in a procession of carriages accompanied by mounted soldiers.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa was honored with the first incoming state visit of Charles’ reign when he visited the UK last November.

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Dinosaur Skeleton Breaks Auction Record with $44.6 Mn Sale in New York

Estimated to be 150 million years old, Apex is said to be "among the most complete skeletons ever found.” EPA
Estimated to be 150 million years old, Apex is said to be "among the most complete skeletons ever found.” EPA
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Dinosaur Skeleton Breaks Auction Record with $44.6 Mn Sale in New York

Estimated to be 150 million years old, Apex is said to be "among the most complete skeletons ever found.” EPA
Estimated to be 150 million years old, Apex is said to be "among the most complete skeletons ever found.” EPA

The largest stegosaurus skeleton ever found, nicknamed Apex, sold for a record breaking $44.6 million at auction in New York on Wednesday, Sotheby's said.

Estimated to be 150 million years old, Apex is said to be "among the most complete skeletons ever found," according to the auction house.

It measures 11 feet (3.3 meters) tall and 27 feet long and counts 254 fossil bone elements of an approximate total of 319, Agence France Presse reported.

The previous auction record of $31.8 million for a dinosaur skeleton was set in 2020 for a Tyrannosaurus Rex nicknamed "Stan."

Sotheby's had expected Apex to fetch between $4 million and $6 million, but the price quickly skyrocketed as telephone bidders deluged the sale, prompting gasps and clapping in the auction room.

After the record-breaking sale, the auctioneer asked her colleague Cassandra Hatton, Sotheby's global head of science, "do you need a cigarette?"

Apex was discovered in May 2022 on the private land of paleontologist Jason Cooper. The auction house says it has collaborated with Cooper to "document the entire process, from discovery and excavation to restoration, preparation and mounting," in order to guarantee the "highest standards and transparency."

In 2022, Christie's auction house had to withdraw a T-rex skeleton a few days before auction in Hong Kong, due to doubts about its authenticity.

Wednesday's auction follows an increasing trend for the sale of dinosaur remains.

Stegosaurus skeletons are already on display around the world, but according to Sotheby's, Apex is 30 percent larger than Sophie, the most complete stegosaurus on public display to date, which is housed in the Natural History Museum in London.