• The largest piece of Mars ever found on Earth, weighing 54 pounds, will be auctioned.
• Expected to sell for between $2 million and $4 million at Sotheby’s in New York.
• Previously displayed at the Italian Space Agency, this meteorite represents nearly 7% of known Martian material on Earth.
• Also included in the auction is a juvenile Ceratosaurus skeleton with an estimated price of $4 million to $6 million.
• The auction is part of Sotheby’s “Geek Week 2025,” featuring 122 unique scientific and natural artifacts.

A 25-kilogram (54-pound) piece of Martian rock, known as NWA 16788, will be auctioned at Sotheby’s in New York with an estimated price tag between $2 million and $4 million. This meteorite, discovered in November 2023 near the Niger-Algeria border, is the largest piece of Mars ever found on Earth, measuring approximately 375 x 279 x 152 mm. "This Martian meteorite is the largest piece of Mars we have ever found by a long shot," said Cassandra Hatton, Sotheby’s vice chairman for science and natural history, highlighting its importance among over 77,000 meteorites recognized on the planet, according to TRT Global, NPR, and CBS News.

The meteorite is believed to have been blasted off the Martian surface by an asteroid impact and traveled approximately 225 million kilometers before landing on Earth. Scientists confirmed its Martian origin through lab analysis, which characterized it as an "olivine-microgabbroic shergottite," a rock type formed from slowly cooled magma. Its glassy surface, likely resulting from intense heat during its atmospheric entry, distinguishes it from ordinary terrestrial rocks. This remarkable piece represents nearly 7 percent of the total Martian material found on Earth, according to TRT Global, NPR, and CBS News.

Alongside the meteorite, Sotheby’s will also auction a juvenile Ceratosaurus nasicornis skeleton, estimated to be about 150 million years old, with a sale price projected between $4 million and $6 million. The skeleton, discovered in Wyoming in 1996, comprises 140 fossilized bones and is being presented as part of this unique scientific auction, emphasizing the ever-growing interest in natural history amongst collectors. The auction is set to take place during Sotheby’s “Geek Week 2025,” which features a total of 122 rare natural artifacts, according to TRT Global, NPR, and CBS News.