Two unique scientific treasures, with estimated prices already soaring between 2 and 6 million dollars.
A juvenile ceratosaurus skeleton, over 2 meters tall and nearly 3 meters long, was discovered in 1996 near Laramie, in the United States. According to experts, the skeleton dates back to the Late Jurassic period, approximately 150 million years ago.
The specimen will go under the hammer this Wednesday in New York, with an expected price range between $4 million and $6 million.
"This is one of only four known ceratosaurus skeletons in the world. The other three are held in museums. This is not only the only specimen available for purchase, but also the only known juvenile,” said Cassandra Hatton, Vice President of Science & Natural History at Sotheby’s, quoted by Africanews.
The sale also features a Martian meteorite, ejected from the surface of Mars by a massive asteroid. It traveled 225 million kilometers through space before crashing into the Sahara Desert. The meteorite was found in Agadez, Niger, in November 2023 by a meteorite hunter. Its estimated auction price: between $2 million and $4 million.
"This Martian meteorite is the largest piece of Mars we've ever found — by far. It is more than twice the size of what was previously considered the largest Martian fragment. We only removed a small portion to study and confirm its Martian origin, but the rock contains all kinds of fascinating data,” explained Cassandra Hatton.
According to Sotheby’s, the auction house in charge of the sale, there are only 400 Martian meteorites among the 77,000 officially recognized meteorites on Earth.