Yahoo Finance The weirdest things ever sold on eBay
A skullcap worn by Pope Francis has found its way on to eBay, after the pontiff swapped hats with a member of an Italian television show during an audience address at St. Peter's Square.
Within just 12 hours of being listed, the sacred piece of headgear has reached a cost of more than $129,870 (€90,000), from a starting bid of $1.4.
The auction will run for seven days, and it's thought the end price could reach the millions.
The cast of the show holding the bid has decided to donate the entire proceeds to the Soleterre NGO Project in Zongo.
Millions of people have used eBay to sell unwanted gifts or second-hand belongings. But this is not the first time a more unusual item has been listed on the site...
An unemployed man: Starting bid $1
(Fotolia)
Steve Sewell, a 58-year-old from Cumbria, said he was prepared to do anything to get work. Sadly he failed to attract any buyers for his labour, but hoped that the publicity would catch the eyes of a potential employer.
"My family said I'm worth more than 99p but desperate times call for desperate measures," he said of his listing last year.
Lunch with Warren Buffett: Starting bid $25,000 (£15,300)
Lunch is auctioned with Buffet (REUTERS/Lucas Jackson/Files)
The opportunity to discuss the weather, home life and anything - apart from his next investment - with the legendary billionaire was sold for $1,000,300 (£612,000) in July.
But this is an auction that actually happens every year to raise money for the Glide Foundation, which provides help to the poor and homeless in San Francisco. Buffett's late wife Susie used to volunteer for the charity.
Britney Spear's hair: Starting bid $1,000,000 (£612,000)
Remember when Ms Spears, apparently feeling a little troubled, walked into a hairdresser in 2007 and proceeded to shave off her barnet?
Well, the hairdresser in question wasted little time in scooping up the locks of a pop princess and listing them on the site. However, eBay stepped in and removed the listing as it was considered a violation of policy.
An Italian village: Buy now $353,535 (€245,000)
(Screenshot: eBay)
Yep the Italians again. An entire village in the mountains was put up for sale on the site. However, it was only available on the basis that a new owner would fix-up the derelict buildings in the area.
It was hoped that the sale of would draw attention to the depopulation of mountain areas in Italy and offer the chance for someone to breathe new life into the hamlet.
A cornflake shaped like illinois: Sold for $1,350 (£826)
(Flickr/kodomut)
Back in 2008, two sisters from Virginia sold a cornflake in the shape of Illinois on the site. Yes really. The winner was revealed as the owner of a travelling museum who wanted to add the specimen to his collection.
It transpired that it wasn't the first cornflake that Monty Kerr from Texas had bought either; he'd once bought one described as the largest flake. Unfortunately, by the time it arrived, it had crumbled.
The meaning of life: Sold for $3.26 (£2)
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A man auctioned the meaning of life in 2000. And, for a small sum, someone bought it.
But it seems that the buyer never disclosed the contents of his secret, with people still scratching their heads about what was bought last year.
A ghost in a jar: Starting bid $99 (£60.59)
In the Yahoo UK office we fashioned our own ghost in a jar. We're just wondering how much it might fetch on ebay. …
In 2003, a man listed a jar that he believed contained a ghost, which was haunting him. In the decription he wrote a disclaimer that stated he wouldn't be responsible for what happened, if the mean spirit managed to get out of the jar.
The jar and its spooky contents achieveda sale price of $50,922 (£31,165), alas the bidder didn't pay up.
It's unclear if the man in question managed to dispose of the ghost through other means.
