Niger’s anger that Mars is finished for auction

“Brezen! It’s shameless!” Prof. Paul Sereno is called below the phone line from Chicago.

Two years ago, he did not try to auction a rare meteor in the West African Niger of Niger, a rare meteorite in Mars last month in New York.

The Paleontologist who has a close relationship with the country believes that he should return to the Niger.

This million -year old piece of red planet, the largest of the earth, the largest, Brought to $ 4.3m (£ 3.2mm) to Sothebei?? Like the buyer, the seller was kept unknown.

But it is unclear whether no money went to the Niger.

External materials that go to earth have long been raised in humans – some religious objects end up, while some as an eagerness for display. Recently, many people have become the subject of scientific study.

The trade of meteorite is compared to the art market, aesthetics and rarity affect the price.

Initially, there was a feeling of wonderfulness around the public exhibition of this fantastic Mars – less than 400 out of the 50,000 meteorites discovered from the neighbors of our planets.

24.7 kg (54 LB) photos taken on the photos of the rock – look in the lights to shine silver and red – this feeling increased.

But then some people started asking questions about how to end under the auction hammer.

At least not a niger’s government, which In a statement“Expressed doubts about his export legality, expressed concern about possible illegal international smuggling.”

Sothebi made a strong debate on this, but Niger has now launched an inquiry into the search and sale situation of the meteorite, which has been named a scientific and integral name for NWA 16788 (NWA standing for Wi-West Africa).

It has not been made much public about how it ended in the world -renowned auction house.

One Italian artist articles Last year, it was published on November 16, 2023 in the Sahara Desert in the Agadez region of Niger, 909 km west of the Chirfa Oasis. (Miles 56 miles) “A meteorite hunter, whose identity remains unattended”.

Meteorite can fall anywhere on earth, but because of the lack of a favorable environment and the lack of human dissolution, Sahara has become a main place for their search. People destroy the refugee landscape spread in many countries in the hope of searching for sale.

According to the Italian article, the NWA 16788, “sold to the international seller” to the international seller, and then transferred to a private gallery in the city of Italian Arezo.

The magazine of the University of Florence described the person as “an important Italian gallery owner.”

A team of scientists under the leadership of the University’s Mineral Professor Giovani Pritisi was able to examine it about its structure and where they came from. The meteorite was then briefly exhibited with the Italian Space Agency in Rome in Italy last year.

Later in New York, it was seen in New York last month, two slices in Italy for more research.

Sothebi said the NWA 16788 was exported by the Niger and taken in accordance with the international process.

“Like everything we sold, all the relevant documents were at every stage of his journey, excellent practice and the need for the countries.”

The spokesperson added that Sothebi knew about the export of Nazar meteorite, and “We are reviewing the information available to us in the light of the question we raised”.

Decade a decade ago, Niger Heritage, a Prof. Sereno is convinced that the Nigerian law has been broken.

The academic of the University of Chicago, who has revealed the huge deposits of the dinosaur bone in Sahara, a campaign to get the cultural and natural heritage of Niger – with anything that falls from the outer space.

A huge museum on an island on the island on the Niger River, which runs from the capital, Nokaya, is planning to keep artwork.

“The international law says that we cannot take something important for a country inheritance – then it is cultural objects, material objects, a natural object, an external thing – out of the country. Called Sereno.

Under the UNSCO of the UN’s cultural institution, a series of global agreements has tried to regulate the trade of these goods. But, According to the study of 2019 International law expert Max Gaunale, when the meteor is included, is a bit obscure as to whether they are covered by this agreement. This place is left to explain the individual states.

In 1997 1997, the Niger approved his own law, which aims to protect his heritage.

Prof. Sereno directs in a section with a detailed list of all categories included. The “mineralized patterns” are mentioned in art works, architecture and archaeological discoveries, but meteorite names are not particularly names.

In a statement on the sales of Sothebi, Niger acknowledged that “there are still no specific laws on meteor” – the auction house also pointed out. But it is unclear how the authorities have been able to get such heavy, clear artwork outside the country without openly noticeable.

Morocco has to face more than 1,000 meteor – Ulka – a similar problem in its boundary, which includes a part of Sahara.

For more than two decades ago, writer Helen Gordon had experienced the writing described as “Saharan Gold Rush”, which was filled with some of the symptoms and the stable political environment.

In her recent book, the book in The Meterseria, she wrote that Morocco had “the world’s greatest exporter space rock”.

Professor Hasna Chennoi Adejheen has tried to hold on to the outside material for his country for a long time in the last 25 years.

“This is a part of us, this is part of our heritage … this is part of our acquaintance and it is important to be proud of the prosperity of the country,” the geologists tell the BBC.

Professors are not against the trade of meteorite, but they are important for the purpose of taking measures to regulate business. She acknowledged that the new rules were not completely successful in preventing the flow of meteorite.

In 2, Professor Chennoi was responsible for collecting materials in the desert from the dismissal of the meteor wallet observed in Mars.

Later, the name Tisint meteorite was weighed in kg, but now she says that Morocco has only 30 grams left. The rest are museums around the world, the largest piece of exhibition at the Natural History Museum of London.

Reflecting on the fate of Niger’s Martian meteorite, she says, “I have been living for 25 years. This is one thing. This is a bad thing, we cannot be happy with it, but that is the state in all our countries.”

Prof. Sereno hopes that sales of Sotiti will prove a turn point – the first Nigerian authorities have motivated the authorities to act and secondly “If the day is seen in a public museum (the museum), the Niger will have to deal with it openly”.