Unusual auction sells a single feather for eye-watering amount

Auctions can be full of weird and wonderful items, many of which people are willing to spend a small fortune on.

Last year, the oldest pair of Levi jeans were sold for an eye-watering $100,000; and it's safe to say that people online were completely bamboozled.

And now a feather (yes, you read that right) has sold for a staggering amount as well.

The feather once belonged to a huia bird, which was reportedly last seen over 100 years about in 1907.

Huias are described as large black songbird and were found in New Zealand before going extinct.

At one point there was an estimated 89,000 of the birds, but they became extinct as a result of predators and, to some extent, human hunting. Apparently huia were a target for collectors and fashion merchants.

The extinct bird was also sacred to the Māori people, whose highest-ranking officials would often weather its feathers in their headpieces.

The tail feather weighs just nine grams. (Webb's Auction House)

It was expected that the tail feather could be sold for as a much as $3,000 - but it ended up bringing in much more than that.

Sold at the Webb's Auction House in Auckland, the feather was sold on Monday (May 20) for a whopping $28,417.

Leah Morris, Head of Decorative Arts at Webb's Auction House, told BBC News that the 205x45mm feather was still in 'wonderful condition'.

"It still has its very distinct sheen to it, and there was no insect damage," she added.

As per the news outlet, only collectors who had license in the system were allowed to purchase it.

The expensive cannot leave New Zealand without permission from the Ministry of Culture and Heritage.

High-ranking Māori members would wear the feathers in headpieces. (ANDREA PATTARO/AFP via Getty Images)

"We got a record number of people are seeing how to become registered collectors," Morris continued. "In New Zealand, we care so much about looking after the land, and the environment and our flora and fauna."

The feather has now been labelled as the most expensive in the world.

A previous record was set in 2010 when a feather of the same bird species - also sold at Webb's - went for NZ$8,400 (US$5,150).

With the price the feather has recently been auctioned for, it's worked out to be more expensive than gold.

Weighing around nine grams, it has worked out to be $5,169 per gram. Meanwhile, it's currently $127 per gram of gold, according to the latest Gold Broker figures.