Rare Feather Tickles a Collector’s Fancy: Sells for World Record $46,500

A feather from an extinct New Zealand bird has sold for a record price to an unknown buyer at an auction in Auckland.

The huia feather which sold at auction for a record NZ$46,251. Courtesy of Webb's Auction House

A single feather from a huia—an extinct New Zealand bird with highly prized plumage—has sold for $46,521 (US$28,365), making it the most expensive feather ever sold at auction.

Since it weighs approximately 9 grams, that works out to $5,169 per gram compared to $127 for a similar weight of gold.