Space. The largest fragment of Mars ever found on Earth is being auctioned.
The extremely rare rock was discovered in the Sahara Desert in 2023. The sale takes place this Wednesday in New York.
The rock weighs nearly 25 kilos. Photo Sipa/AP/Richard Drew
It's an incredibly rare object being put up for sale this Wednesday in New York by Sotheby's: a 24.67 kg piece of Mars, the largest fragment of the red planet ever found on Earth! The asking price is $2 million, or €1.72 million.
This content is blocked because you have not accepted cookies and other trackers.
By clicking on "I accept" , cookies and other trackers will be placed and you will be able to view the contents ( more information ).
By clicking on "I accept all cookies" , you authorize the deposit of cookies and other tracers for the storage of your data on our sites and applications for the purposes of personalization and advertising targeting.
You can withdraw your consent at any time by consulting our data protection policy . Manage my choices
According to the auction house, this rock, a reddish-brown color characteristic of the planet Mars, was discovered in December 2023 by a meteorite hunter in a remote region of Niger, within the Sahara Desert. It is believed to have fallen to Earth relatively recently, after an asteroid struck the Red Planet.
The fragment was authenticated and named NWA16788. But its sale has been criticized by some experts. For example, meteorite specialist Brigitte Zanda expressed surprise on France Info that this rare piece was not placed in a museum rather than purchased at auction by a wealthy collector. "We emphasize their monetary value [...] but for us, they are still scientific objects, and what's important is the science we do with them. Clearly, these objects belong in a museum," she declared on the radio.
Le Républicain Lorrain
