Nature & Environment
Rare Complete Skeleton Of Extinct Dodo Bird To Go Under Hammer In November
Meg K.
First Posted: Aug 26, 2016 08:44 AM EDT
For the first time ever in nearly 100 years, an almost- complete rare skeleton of the iconic bird dodo is all set to go under the hammer sometime later this year.
What's unique about the skeleton is that it is one of the most complete dodo specimens in the world. All the other mostly complete dodo skeletons are currently in museums and institutions. It is to be noted that such an auction is likely to never come up again as the Mauritian Government has banned the export of all Dodo bones. The 95% complete composite skeleton is expected to fetch a six-figure sum when it goes on auction in November at Summers Place Auctions, West Sussex, reported The Independent.
The dodo bird, which was native to the island of Mauritius, was first spotted in 1598. The flightless birds reached to the verge of extinction in mere 70 years of being found due to human activities. The skeleton of the extinct bird comes from a private collector who began gathering dodo bones from private collections and auctions from the 1970s and 1980s.
Like most collectors, he spent a long time adding to his collection, and then in the early 2000s, he realized that he almost had enough bones to construct a skeleton. The only bone he lacks were part of the skull and one set of claws, which have been reconstructed. He meticulously put the bones back together to create as complete a specimen as possible.
And now he has decided to let go of his Dodo and make this the first complete skeleton to ever be available for auction. After all, it may not be possible for another composite skeleton to come up for auction again, since the Mauritian Government has rightly banned all exports of Dodo bones.
Rupert van der Werff from Summers Place said that it comes as a unique opportunity for an individual or an institution to own a specimen of the extinct dodo bird, considering the rarity and completeness of the skeleton.
"The majority of auction estimates are based on precedent of similar pieces being offered, which is impossible in this case, so given its rarity and desirability, we are anticipating an auction price in the region of a high six figure sum," added Werff, reported Daily Mail. More details on the auction can be found at summersplaceauctions.com.
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First Posted: Aug 26, 2016 08:44 AM EDT
For the first time ever in nearly 100 years, an almost- complete rare skeleton of the iconic bird dodo is all set to go under the hammer sometime later this year.
What's unique about the skeleton is that it is one of the most complete dodo specimens in the world. All the other mostly complete dodo skeletons are currently in museums and institutions. It is to be noted that such an auction is likely to never come up again as the Mauritian Government has banned the export of all Dodo bones. The 95% complete composite skeleton is expected to fetch a six-figure sum when it goes on auction in November at Summers Place Auctions, West Sussex, reported The Independent.
The dodo bird, which was native to the island of Mauritius, was first spotted in 1598. The flightless birds reached to the verge of extinction in mere 70 years of being found due to human activities. The skeleton of the extinct bird comes from a private collector who began gathering dodo bones from private collections and auctions from the 1970s and 1980s.
Like most collectors, he spent a long time adding to his collection, and then in the early 2000s, he realized that he almost had enough bones to construct a skeleton. The only bone he lacks were part of the skull and one set of claws, which have been reconstructed. He meticulously put the bones back together to create as complete a specimen as possible.
And now he has decided to let go of his Dodo and make this the first complete skeleton to ever be available for auction. After all, it may not be possible for another composite skeleton to come up for auction again, since the Mauritian Government has rightly banned all exports of Dodo bones.
Rupert van der Werff from Summers Place said that it comes as a unique opportunity for an individual or an institution to own a specimen of the extinct dodo bird, considering the rarity and completeness of the skeleton.
"The majority of auction estimates are based on precedent of similar pieces being offered, which is impossible in this case, so given its rarity and desirability, we are anticipating an auction price in the region of a high six figure sum," added Werff, reported Daily Mail. More details on the auction can be found at summersplaceauctions.com.
See Now: NASA's Juno Spacecraft's Rendezvous With Jupiter's Mammoth Cyclone