[4] FMNH PR 2081 was discovered on August 12, 1990,[5] by American explorer and fossil collector Sue Hendrickson, after whom it is named.

After ownership disputes were settled, Sue was auctioned in October 1997 for US$8.3 million, one of the highest amounts ever paid for a dinosaur fossil.

She returned to camp with two small pieces of the bones and reported the discovery to the president of the Black Hills Institute, Peter Larson.

In 1992, the FBI and the South Dakota National Guard raided the site where the Black Hills Institute had been cleaning the bones and seized the fossil,[15] charging Larson on 158 points.

The government transferred the remains to the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, where the skeleton was stored until the penal and civil legal disputes were settled.

However, the organization realized that they might have had difficulty securing funding and requested that companies and private citizens provide financial support.

Two new research laboratories funded by McDonald's were created and staffed by Field Museum preparators whose job was to slowly and carefully remove all the rock, or "matrix", from the bones.

During its life, Sue suffered from several injuries,[13] including a damaged right shoulder blade, a torn tendon in the right arm most likely due to a struggle with prey, and three broken ribs.

[citation needed] Both the misshapen left fibula and the fused c26 and c27 caudal vertebrae show signs consistent with the bone infection osteomyelitis.

[10][page needed] The dinosaur died in a seasonal stream bed, which washed away some small bones as it rapidly covered the remains with sediment, ultimately leading to fossilization.

Sue’s mount consists of a bent steel frame which supports each bone safely, displaying the skeleton fully articulated as it was in life.

The dinosaur’s real skull was not incorporated into the mounted display, as subsequent study would be difficult with the head 4 m (13 ft) off the ground.

Originally, the Field Museum had plans to incorporate Sue into their preexisting dinosaur exhibit on the second floor, but had little left in their budget to do so after purchasing it.

Instead, the T. rex was put on display in the building’s main hall directly in front of the museum’s north entrance, where it would remain for the next 18 years.

[42] In early 2018, Sue was dismantled and moved to its own gallery on the museum’s upper level, connected to the Evolving Planet exhibit and the Elizabeth Morse Genius Hall of Dinosaurs.

[45] The 5,100 square-foot exhibit includes animated videos of Sue that are projected in 6K onto nine-foot tall panes behind its skeleton.

[46][39][47] Atlantic Productions worked with the Field Museum to create multiple animated sequences, including Sue scavenging an Ankylosaurus carcass, battling a Triceratops, and hunting an Edmontosaurus.

[47] According to the Field Museum's associate curator of dinosaurs Pete Makovicky, the new suite was designed to accentuate the size and stature of Sue, and although smaller, the exhibit allows for a more intimate display of the T. rex,[48] along with the skull of a Triceratops and other Cretaceous period artifacts, such as shark teeth and pachycephalosaurid bones.

Sue’s reassembled display is intended to reflect the newest scientific theories, including the proper furcula and attachment of the gastralia to the rest of the skeleton.

[49][50][51] Sue's real skull is kept in a separate display case in the exhibition, allowing it to be removed for study as required.

O'Connor, a curator at the Field Museum, where the T. imperator holotype Sue is displayed, regarded the new species as too poorly supported to justify modifying the exhibit signs.

[54] A 1997 episode of the PBS show Nova, "Curse of the T. Rex", discussed the history of the discovery and ensuing legal challenges.

[30][58] The 1998 4-episode television special Dinosaurs: Inside and Out extensively discussed Sue, mentioning the now-disproven theory that it was killed by a bite to the back of the head by another T. rex.

[63][64] Sue takes on a humorous, sarcastic tone in their online presence, referring to themself as a “murderbird”,[49] commenting on current events, and joking about eating museum guests.