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Largest Martian Meteorite Fetches $5.3 Million at New York Auction

Collectors paid a hammer price of $4.3 million before fees at Sotheby’s Geek Week sale, fueling debate about private buyers restricting scientific research.

A Martian meteorite, weighing 54.388 lbs. (24.67 kg), said to be the largest piece of Mars on Earth, estimated at $2 - 4 million, is displayed at Sotheby's, in New York, Wednesday, July 9, 2025, part of their Geek Week auction, July 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
The identity of the rock collector has not been revealed.
Image
A Martian meteorite, weighing 54.388 lbs. (24.67 kg), said to be the largest piece of Mars on Earth, estimated at $2 - 4 million, is displayed at Sotheby's, in New York, Wednesday, July 9, 2025, part of their Geek Week auction, July 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Overview

  • The 54-pound fragment measures about 15 × 11 × 6 inches, making it roughly 70 percent larger than the next-largest Martian meteorite recovered on Earth.
  • Laboratory tests confirmed the rock is an olivine-microgabbroic shergottite containing pyroxene, olivine and maskelynite glass that matches Viking probe chemical signatures.
  • A meteorite hunter discovered the specimen in Niger’s Sahara Desert in November 2023 after it was blasted off Mars by an asteroid impact and traveled over 140 million miles.
  • Only about 400 of the 77,000 officially recognized meteorites originate from Mars, and this single piece represents nearly 7 percent of all Martian material held on Earth.
  • Researchers and curators caution that high-value private auctions may limit public access and ongoing scientific study of such rare extraterrestrial samples.