First we had the Virgin Mary grilled cheese sandwich that fetched $28,000 on eBay in 2004. Thirteen years later, a Cheeto shaped like Harambe the gorilla has supposedly sold for $99,900 (no, that’s not a typo).
Measuring about 1 1/2 inches in length, the Harambe Cheeto was advertised on eBay as a “one of a kind” item. The original Cheetos bag it came in was not included (presumably tossed after all of its contents were eaten), but the crunchy morsel will be shipped free of charge from Burbank, Calif. The cheese corn snack received 132 bids on eBay over 10 days, with the auction opening at $11.99 on Jan. 28 and ending Tuesday morning.
“I opened up a bag of Flamin Hot Cheetos and as soon as I looked inside I came across this unique Cheetos that looks like Harambe the gorilla,” the seller, named valuestampsinc, recalled in his listing. You may remember Harambe as the silverback gorilla who was shot and killed at the Cincinnati Zoo last May after a child fell into his enclosure. His death was a topic of contentious debate on the news and sparked an explosion of memes.
TMZ, who spoke with the seller Tuesday, reported that eBay was confirming whether the winning bid was legitimate.
Now hopeful sellers are trying to make a quick buck after seeing the, er, success of this auction. “Rare” Cheetos of literally all shapes have been posted on eBay in the past couple of days, including those that resemble the Heisman Trophy, a “unique” bald eagle on a branch that’s proclaimed as a collector’s item, and even a set of four that depict the theory of evolution.
Feature Photo Credit: eBay user valuestampsinc
Alyssa Kim
Alyssa is culture's former Web Editor. Raised in Mass., she's excited to be back in her home state after six years of working in journalism and TV production in NYC.
