08/22/2026
😂 He Bought It for the Googly Eyes… Then It Sold for $60,000!
A dusty taxidermy head was bought for just £50, mainly because someone had stuck silly plastic googly eyes on it—and the buyer thought it was hilarious. 👀😂
When the strange piece appeared at an auction in Bristol on August 11, 2026, it was listed as an ordinary fox head, with an estimate of only about £40. 🦊
But collector and taxidermist James Cranfield noticed something unusual. After around 10 days of research, he became convinced the teeth didn't belong to a fox.
His shocking theory? 😳
It could actually be the head of a thylacine, or Tasmanian tiger—a striped Australian predator officially declared extinct in 1936. 🐯🇦🇺
Thylacine specimens are incredibly rare, and only one other mounted head is reportedly known to exist, with its whereabouts unknown.
Cranfield called it the “holy grail” of natural-history collecting. 🏆
He drove about three and a half hours from Essex to bid in person. But another bidder had also recognized its possible identity.
The bidding battle ended at £50,000, or about £60,000 including fees. 💰🔥
Cranfield called the price “eye-watering,” but the piece could be considered priceless because there is no comparable sale.
He is now arranging CT scans to confirm the identification and hopes to eventually lend it to museums and researchers. 🔬🏛️
And the seller?
They originally paid £50 for a laugh. 😂
They watched that £50 purchase become a £50,000 auction sale—all because of a pair of googly eyes. 👀💰