Arriving straight from Mars, a meteorite weighing around 25 kg was sold on July 16 by the auction house Sotheby's to an anonymous private buyer for a record sum exceeding $5 million (about €4.3 million).
The sale of the largest Martian meteorite ever found has angered Niger, where it was discovered in November 2023 by a meteorite hunter "in the remote Agadez region of Niger." The government announced that it would open an investigation following the auction to "shed light on the matter."
The incident "very likely has all the characteristics of illicit international trafficking," according to officials in the Nigerien capital, which suspended exports of precious stones and meteorites on Friday, August 8, until further notice. Sotheby's denies the allegations and insists the stone was "exported from Niger and transported in accordance with all applicable international procedures." However, in light of the controversy, a review of the case is underway.
For American paleontologist Paul Sereno, who has worked closely with authorities in Niamey for years, all evidence suggests the stone left Niger "illegally." "Everyone is anonymous" in this story, he said. It was then sold to an international dealer, briefly exhibited in Italy, and eventually appeared in auction catalogs in the United States.
"If they had caught the meteorite as it was speeding toward Earth and before it landed in a country, then they could have claimed it (...) but in this case, I'm sorry, it belongs to Niger, even if its origin is Mars," he explained. Meteorites do not have a universal legal status; their ownership is governed by international law as well as the specific laws of the country where they land.
In the United States, for example, ownership of these rocks fallen from the sky goes to the landowner if the property is private, which is not the case in Niger. Niger has a law protecting its cultural heritage, which includes "rare mineralogical specimens," noted Matthieu Gounelle, professor at the Muséum national d'histoire naturelle, and his father, university professor Max Gounelle. Both are specialists in the regulations surrounding the collection and sale of meteorites. According to them, "there is no doubt (...) that meteorites must be included among the rare mineralogical specimens" that are protected.
Beyond the legal disputes and the possible involvement of trafficking networks, the sale of this meteorite also raises ethical questions. This rock, named NWA 16,788, is of inestimable scientific value. Much larger than other known Martian meteorites – which are extremely rare – it offers a unique record of the geological history of the Red Planet.
"In my opinion, this is not something that should be sold at auction and risk disappearing into someone's private collection," argued Professor Sereno, who called for its return to Niger, where it could be studied and displayed to the public.
Translation of an original article published in French on lemonde.fr; the publisher may only be liable for the French version.