Online Reporter
CHICAGO. – “Brazen! It is brazen!” Prof Paul Sereno says down the phone line from Chicago.
He makes no effort to disguise his anger that a rare meteorite from Mars discovered two years ago in the West African nation of Niger ended up being auctioned off in New York last month to an unnamed buyer.
The palaeontologist, who has close connections with the country, believes it should be back in Niger.
This millions-of-years-old piece of the Red Planet, the largest ever found on Earth, fetched US$4,3 million at Sotheby’s. Like the buyer, the seller was kept anonymous. But it is unclear if any of this money went to Niger.
Fragments of extraterrestrial material that have made their way to Earth have long inspired reverence among humans — some ending up as religious objects, others as curiosities for display. More recently, many have become the subject of scientific study.
The trade in meteorites has been compared to the art market, with aesthetics and rarity affecting the price.
At first, there was a sense of awe surrounding the public display of this extraordinary Martian find – less than 400 of the 50 000 meteorites discovered have been shown to come from our planetary neighbour.
The photographs taken at Sotheby’s of the 24,7kg rock — appearing in the lights to glow silver and red — compounded this feeling. – BBC.com
