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Mars Rock Sells for Astronomical Price at ‘Geek’ Auction

The rock was included in a lineup of rare geological and archaeological objects.

A rock just sold for more than a New York City penthouse apartment. The Associated Press reported that Sotheby’s hosted an auction of rare geological and archaeological objects on Wednesday and managed to sell a meteor from Mars for a whopping $5.3 million. The identity of the millionaire rock collector has not been revealed. At the length of a medium pizza and weighing 54 pounds, the Martian rock is the largest of its kind, more than double the size of the second-largest Mars rock. The meteor, named NWA 16788, was likely formed from cooled Martian magma, and it probably fell to Earth relatively recently, according to Sotheby’s. The meteor was discovered in the Sahara Desert by a meteor hunter in 2023. It was expected to fetch between $2 million and $4 million and was officially sold for $4.3 million, with an additional $1 million tacked on in fees. However, the meteor is far from the most expensive item sold at Sotheby’s “Geek Week” on Wednesday; the auction raked in over $30 million for a juvenile dinosaur skeleton.