Martian meteorite sells for record $5.3 million at Sotheby's
The auction on Wednesday for the rock known as NWA 16788 sparked a 15-minute bidding war between online and phone bidders.
"This is an amazing Martian meteorite that broke off of the Martian surface," said Cassandra Hatton, Sotheby's vice-chairman and global head of science and natural history, ahead of the auction.
The fragment was discovered in November 2023 by a meteorite hunter in the Sahara Desert, in Niger's remote Agadez region.
"The people there knew already that it was something special," said Hatton. "It wasn't until it got to the lab and pieces were tested that we realized, 'Oh my gosh, it's Martian.' And then when those results came back and we compared and saw, OK, it's not just Martian, it is the biggest piece of Mars on the planet."
About 5 million years ago, an asteroid or comet slammed into Mars so hard that rocks and other debris launched into space.
"So it comes hurtling... 140 million miles through space, makes it through Earth's atmosphere," said Hatton, noting that most things burn up in our planet's atmosphere.
"It's incredible that it made it through and then that it crashed in the middle of the desert instead of the middle of the ocean, in a place where we could find it, and that somebody who could recognize what it was found it.
"So there's a whole kind of process or a layer of things that have to happen in order for this to become reality and be here in front of us."
Just like its mother planet, NWA 16788 has a distinctly reddish hue, as well as signs of fusion crust from its violent descent through Earth's atmosphere.
There are about 400 officially recognized Martian meteorites on Earth, of which NWA 16788 is by far the largest.
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Reuters
17-07-2025
- Reuters
Martian meteorite sells for record $5.3 million at Sotheby's
NEW YORK, July 17 (Reuters) - A 54-pound (24.5-kg) Martian meteorite that is the largest known piece of Mars found on Earth has sold for $5.3 million at Sotheby's, setting a new auction record for a meteorite. The auction on Wednesday for the rock known as NWA 16788 sparked a 15-minute bidding war between online and phone bidders. "This is an amazing Martian meteorite that broke off of the Martian surface," said Cassandra Hatton, Sotheby's vice-chairman and global head of science and natural history, ahead of the auction. The fragment was discovered in November 2023 by a meteorite hunter in the Sahara Desert, in Niger's remote Agadez region. "The people there knew already that it was something special," said Hatton. "It wasn't until it got to the lab and pieces were tested that we realized, 'Oh my gosh, it's Martian.' And then when those results came back and we compared and saw, OK, it's not just Martian, it is the biggest piece of Mars on the planet." About 5 million years ago, an asteroid or comet slammed into Mars so hard that rocks and other debris launched into space. "So it comes hurtling... 140 million miles through space, makes it through Earth's atmosphere," said Hatton, noting that most things burn up in our planet's atmosphere. "It's incredible that it made it through and then that it crashed in the middle of the desert instead of the middle of the ocean, in a place where we could find it, and that somebody who could recognize what it was found it. "So there's a whole kind of process or a layer of things that have to happen in order for this to become reality and be here in front of us." Just like its mother planet, NWA 16788 has a distinctly reddish hue, as well as signs of fusion crust from its violent descent through Earth's atmosphere. There are about 400 officially recognized Martian meteorites on Earth, of which NWA 16788 is by far the largest.
BBC News
17-07-2025
- BBC News
Mars meteorite sells for whopping $4.3m at auction
Are you ready for a price that's out of this world?A very rare piece of Mars rock has sold for a whopping $4.3 million (£3.2 million) at auction on meteorite was first discovered in 2023, in the country of Niger in known as NWA 16788 – not the most memorable name for a rock worth that much money!Sotheby's - the auction house which sold the meteorite - says it weighs 54lb (24.5kg) and is nearly 15in (38.1cm) long. What is a meteorite? A meteorite is a piece of rock that has come from outside of has survived falling through space and Earth's atmosphere to arrive on our come from meteoroids - rocks that exist in can read more about the differences between meteors, meteorites and asteroids here. We do not know who purchased this small chunk of the Red Planet, and the details of the owner are expected to remain date, there have only been around 400 Martian meteorites found on Earth that we know of."This is the largest piece of Mars on planet Earth. The odds of this getting from there to here are astronomically small," said Cassandra Hatton, vice-chairman of science and natural history at Sotheby's."Remember that approximately 70% of Earth's surface is covered in water. So we're incredibly lucky that this landed on dry land instead of the middle of the ocean where we could actually find it."
Telegraph
17-07-2025
- Telegraph
‘Incredibly rare' Mars rock sells for £3.2m
An 'incredibly rare' piece of Mars has sold for £3.2 million at a New York auction after being found in the Sahara desert. The 54lb (24.5kg) meteorite is the largest piece of Mars on Earth. It was ejected from the Martian surface by a massive asteroid strike and then journeyed 140 million miles through space before hurtling through Earth's atmosphere and crashing in Niger. A meteorite hunter then found the 15-inch rock, which is called NWA 16788, in Niger's Agadez region in November 2023. Cassandra Hatton, vice-chairman of science and natural history at Sotheby 's, which sold the meteorite, said: 'This is the largest piece of Mars on planet Earth. 'The odds of this getting from there to here are astronomically small,' she said in a video posted online. 'Remember that approximately 70 per cent of Earth's surface is covered in water. 'So we're incredibly lucky that this landed on dry land instead of the middle of the ocean, where we could actually find it.' Only about 400 Martian meteorites have ever been found on Earth, and NWA 16788 accounts for about seven per cent of all Martian material currently known here. Sotheby's described the find as an 'incredibly rare discovery'. NWA 16788 is 'covered in a reddish-brown fusion crust giving it an unmistakable Martian hue,' according to the auction catalogue. Around a fifth of the meteorite is made up of a glassy material called Maskelynite, created by the intense heat and pressure produced when Mars was hit by an asteroid. 'Given the severity of impact necessary to eject any material off the Martian surface and into space, researchers believe there are only approximately 19 craters large enough to be the potential origination points for Martian meteorites,' said Sotheby's. A study of the surface has found little 'terrestrial weathering', suggesting the meteorite may not have been on Earth long. 'In other words, NWA 16788 is likely a relative newcomer here on Earth, having fallen from outer space rather recently,' Sotheby's said. Details of the buyer have not been made public and it is not clear where the meteorite will now reside. The rock was sold as part of Sotheby's 'Geek Week' auction, where fossils, mineral deposits, meteorites and other science and natural history exhibits went under the hammer. A Ceratosaurus skeleton from the late Jurassic period sold for £19 ($26m) and the skull of a Pachycephalosaurus sold for £1m ($1.4m).
