Latest news with #Sotheby's
The Mainichi
2 hours ago
- Business
- The Mainichi
Japanese firm wins auction for Hermes's original Birkin bag
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- A Japanese company won an auction in Paris for the original Birkin bag crafted by French brand Hermes for a record 1.47 billion yen ($10 million), the firm said Friday. The black leather Birkin bag, named after and created for singer and actress Jane Birkin in the 1980s, has been sold to Valuence Japan Inc., a buyer and reseller of luxury items and jewelry. Sotheby's said the price for the iconic bag "set a new record for any handbag sold at auction." Birkin, who died in 2023, owned the bag for 10 years before it was auctioned for charity. It has her initials "J.B." and still bears the marks of stickers she put on it, according to Sotheby's. Valuence Japan described the bag as a "one of a kind" item, saying it has no plans to sell it but will preserve it for its cultural value.
The Print
9 hours ago
- Science
- The Print
Sotheby's poised for red hot bidding battle as largest Martian meteorite goes up for auction in NY
With a reddish-brown Martian feel, the 24.67 kg meteorite is expected to attract intense bidding in New York. Measuring 15 inches wide, the meteorite dwarfs the previous largest Martian specimen by 70 percent. The NWA 16788 was discovered in Niger and is assumed to have travelled 140 million miles to reach Earth. As opposed to meteorites that erode over centuries, it has minimal weathering, a point highlighted by meteoriticists. Bengaluru: The largest piece of Mars on Earth is going up for auction Wednesday in New York. The bid amount for this meteorite collision remnant is set to open at USD 1.6 million, according to Sotheby's auction house. It was in the 1980s that the scientists first started to confirm meteorites from Mars with the help of isotopic analysis—a technique used to understand the age, origin, and chemical composition of a sample. Since then, the demand for authentic pieces has grown. The global craze for astronomical artefacts reportedly surged in the 2010s, with meteorite prices climbing to record figures. In 2013, Chelyabinsk meteorite fragments were sold, with one small piece reaching a price of around $7,000 back then. In 2022, a Costa Rican meteorite was sold for $35,000. In the UK in 2021, 15 gm of Winchcombe meteorite fetched $3,500. In this case, the meteorite is expected to fetch $4 million. The Martian rock is part of Sotheby's Geek Week 2025, featuring more than a hundred lots, including fossils and gem minerals. A juvenile dinosaur skeleton is also set for the bid. The Ceratosaurus was discovered in 1996 at Wyoming's Bone Cabin Quarry, a dinosaur fossil site. The event opens a market for rare scientific and natural history artifacts. CNN reported that some palaeontologists are not happy with the auction. The rock should not be hoarded by a private collector, but it deserves a museum for science and the public, according to Steve Brusatte, a palaeontologist at the University of Edinburgh. Beyond the scientific value, NWA 16788 represents a tangible piece of another planet. In the case of institutions, it's an opportunity to understand the clues about geology. The Martian meteorite is a rare specimen, as only 400 out of 77,000 documented meteorites on Earth originate from Mars, according to Sotheby's auction house. A fragment of this meteorite was analysed in a specialised laboratory, confirming its Martian origin by matching its chemical composition to samples collected during the 1976 Viking space probe mission. The meteorite is assumed to have formed from slowly cooled Martian magma and contains minerals like pyroxene and olivine, giving it a unique texture. The glassy surface as seen is probably due to the intense heat during atmospheric entry. The rock was previously displayed at the Italian Space Agency, Rome, but the meteorite owner remains confidential as the auction house did not reveal the name. The exact arrival date on Earth is still unknown. That said, tests suggest it landed in recent years, according to the New York auction house. (Edited by Tony Rai) Also Read: Shubhanshu Shukla carried sleeping water bears to ISS. How experiment could unlock space travel secrets
Time of India
13 hours ago
- Science
- Time of India
A dinosaur, Steve Jobs' first Apple computer and a rock from Mars are going for sale
Sotheby's is hosting its 'Geek Week' auction in New York this month, featuring a rare Ceratosaurus skeleton , an original Apple-1 computer , and space memorabilia from astronaut Buzz Aldrin's personal collection. The event brings together highlights from the categories of Natural History, History of Science & Technology, and Space Exploration. Rare Ceratosaurus and Martian meteorite among natural history highlights The key item in the Natural History category is a 10-foot-8-inch-long Ceratosaurus skeleton with a nearly complete skull. Excavated in Wyoming in 1996, the fossil is believed to be a juvenile and dates back 150 million years. Only four such specimens are known to exist. Sotheby's has estimated the price at $4 million to $6 million, and the current bid stands at $3.5 million. Also on offer is the 'largest piece of Mars on Earth,' a Martian meteorite discovered in Niger's Kefkaf region in 2023. It was later verified by the Shanghai Astronomy Museum. Known as NWA 16788, the meteorite is 70% larger than the next largest known Mars rock on Earth and makes up about 6.5% of all Martian material identified on the planet. It is expected to sell for $2 million to $4 million. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Struggling With Belly Fat? Try This at Home Home Fitness Hack Shop Now Undo Apple-1 computer and early tech manual in spotlight The History of Science & Technology section features an Apple-1 computer known as the 'Romkey' model. It is one of the original 50 units hand-built by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak and is estimated to fetch between $400,000 and $600,000. It previously sold for $365,000 in 2015. This batch was commissioned by Paul Terrell, owner of the Byte Shop, after he saw a demo at the Home Brew Computer Club. Another rare item is the only known copy of the first electronic computer manual — for the Binary Automatic Computer (BINAC) — written in 1949 by Joseph D. Chapline. Sotheby's has valued it between $30,000 and $50,000. Live Events Apollo artifacts and Buzz Aldrin's lunar checklist lead space collection In the Space Exploration category, the complete set of 11 flown Apollo Robbins Medallions from Apollo 14 astronaut Stuart Roosa's collection is a key lot. These medallions, minted in limited numbers for each Apollo mission, were flown as mementos. The set is expected to sell for $100,000 to $150,000. Also featured is a sheet from the Apollo 11 Lunar Surface Checklist, signed by Buzz Aldrin and marked 'CARRIED IN EAGLE / TO THE LUNAR SURFACE.' It is accompanied by a letter from Aldrin, stating, 'If conditions arose where Neil Armstrong and I had to make an immediate lift-off from the moon, we would have referred to this sheet … The complete checklist for lunar surface activities was a vital document to the success of our mission. It provided information on steps required to operate equipment associated with the first lunar landing.' The lot carries an estimated value of $20,000 to $30,000. Sotheby's Geek Week continues to draw interest from collectors of science, technology, and space history.
Ammon
13 hours ago
- Business
- Ammon
Most expensive handbag in history sells for $10 million
Ammon News - A black leather Birkin bag just sold for €8.6 million ($10 million), with fees, becoming the most expensive handbag to ever sell at auction. The hammer fell at a winning bid of €7 million ($8.2 million). The first ever Birkin to have been created by Hermès, the bag was designed for the British actor and singer Jane Birkin. The Francophone style icon used it nearly every day from 1985 to 1994, before it became the ultimate symbol of luxury. On Thursday, the rarefied bag was sold by auction house Sotheby's in an online sale of notable luxury fashion, including designs by Alexander McQueen and Christian Dior. The auction house declined to provide an estimate of the original Birkin to CNN ahead of the sale, but advanced bidding had already smashed records at €1 million. During a live stream of the sale, gasps could be heard as the bidding pushed higher and higher. The 10-minute bidding war between nine collectors ultimately ended in victory for a private collector from Japan, according to a Sotheby's press release. CNN
Yahoo
a day ago
- Science
- Yahoo
At 54 pounds, this Mars rock is largest on Earth. It could sell at auction for $4 million
A chunk of the Martian surface that made an unlikely interplanetary voyage to Earth will soon be available to the highest bidder. And for a few million dollars, it could be yours. Sotheby's, a British-founded broker based in New York City, will soon auction off a cosmic item it's billing as the largest Martian meteorite ever found on Earth. Of course, such a distinction is expected to also fetch a high price tag. Here's everything to know about the large, valuable Mars rock. The large space rock, which has the scientific name of NWA 16788, had its Martian origins validated by the Meteoritical Society, which included it in its Meteoritical Bulletin, the global journal of record for meteor-related science. Sotheby's, one of the oldest and largest fine auctioneers of art and collectibles in the world, will auction off the meteorite, along with more than 100 other items, Wednesday, July 16, at its New York City headquarters. Marketed by Sotheby's as "the largest Martian meteorite ever found on Earth," the cosmic object could sell for up to $4 million, making it the most valuable meteorite ever offered at auction. "NWA 16788 is a discovery of extraordinary significance," Cassandra Hatton, vice chairman of science and natural history for Sotheby's, said in a statement. "Weathered by its journey through space and time, its immense size and unmistakable red color sets it apart as a once-in-a-generation find." Rocks in space are known as meteoroids. If those space rocks enter Earth's atmosphere, they become meteors that streak across the sky in events colloquially referred to as "shooting stars." Meteors – or fragments of them – that survive their atmospheric trip and land on the surface without burning up become meteorites, according to NASA. The Martian meteorite is 54 pounds, or about the weight of a standard bag of cement. Measuring nearly 15 inches by 11 inches by 6 inches, the space rock is approximately 70% larger than the next largest piece of Mars found on Earth. In fact, it is so large that it represents approximately 6.5% of all Martian material ever found on Earth. NWA 16788 was discovered Nov. 16, 2023, by a meteorite hunter in Niger's remote Agadez region in the Sahara Desert. Featuring an unmistakable reddish Martian hue, NWA 16788's internal composition suggests it was blasted from the surface of Mars by a powerful asteroid strike. Intense enough to turn some of the meteorite's minerals into glass, the asteroid strike sent the rock hurtling through space, where it miraculously made it through Earth's atmosphere without burning up, Sotheby's said in an auction house video. Because the meteorite shows signs of minimal Earthly weathering, and its chemical makeup has not significantly changed, experts believe it reached our planet in recent years. On a planet mostly covered in water, discovering meteorites on land is incredibly rare. And Mars meteorites are even more elusive on Earth. Of the more than 77,000 officially recognized meteorites, only 400 are Martian meteorites, according to Sotheby's. The meteorite was previously on exhibit at the Italian Space Agency in Rome and at a private gallery in Arezzo, Italy, in Tuscany, before it landed in Sotheby's auction. Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at elagatta@ This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Giant Mars rock at auction: $4 million, red meteorite could be yours
