First leather bag made from T-Rex cells goes to auction

First leather bag made from T-Rex cells goes to auction STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN / AFP A leather bag produced from cells inspired by traces of a Tyrannosaurus rex will be auctioned this Thursday (11) in Paris. Considered a unique piece, it has an estimated value between US$ 350,000 and US$ 580,000 (about R$ 1.8 million to R$ 3 million). The piece was presented for the first time a few months ago in Amsterdam and was developed from collagen fragments identified in a T-Rex femur found in Montana, United States, about 25 years ago. According to Iacopo Briano, a paleontology expert associated with the project, recent advances in biotechnology have allowed researchers to use information obtained from these traces to guide cell cultures capable of producing, in a laboratory, a material similar to the skin of the prehistoric animal. The bag will be auctioned at the Drouot auction house, which describes the item as "an object unprecedented in the history of luxury" and a demonstration of the potential of so-called cellular leather, produced without the need for animal farming. First "T-Rex leather" bag on display before its auction at the Hotel Drouot, in Paris, on June 9, 2026 STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN / AFP According to those responsible for the project, the material differs from vegan leather, which is usually manufactured with synthetic compounds.

In this case, it is a fabric developed from cell cultures, with the goal of reproducing the characteristics of natural leather. "It is skin 100% produced by cell culture and, at the same time, inspired by an animal that went extinct 67 million years ago," stated Briano. Now on g1 READ ALSO: NASA chief defends Artemis III mission crew, composed only of men.