Story thread · 2 reports / 2 sources

Goofy ‘fox’ bought for £50 at market was actually natural history ‘holy grail’

metro.co.uk · 12h · first reportShare

Auctioneer Andrew Stowe with the taxidermy head (Picture: William Dax / SWNS) A taxidermy ‘fox head’ that was bought for £50 at a market because it looked a bit goofy has been sold for £60,000 at auction after its true nature was revealed. Natural history enthusiast James Crawford spotted the item for sale in Bristol and, with his curiosity piqued, did a bit of extra research. He discovered the head did not belong to a fox – but to a thylacine, also known as a Tasmanian tiger, a type of marsupial that became extinct 100 years ago. The last known of the species died at Hobart Zoo, Tasmania, in 1936 and only a few hundred specimens still exist, most of which are skins made into rugs. James said: ‘This was undocumented and undiscovered, and is the only known head in the world. Sign up for all of the latest stories Start your day informed with Metro's News Updates newsletter or get Breaking News alerts the moment it happens. ‘For natural history collectors like myself this is the find of m