E.T. phone eBay

Sometimes, a piece of soggy cereal is just a piece of soggy cereal. Unless, of course, it's a piece of soggy cereal bearing an uncanny resemblance to history's most beloved extraterrestrial, E.T.

That's the image Australian graphic designer Chris Doyle spotted when he gazed into his bowl of Kellogg's Nutri-Grain one morning. Instead of phoning home, the 27-year-old graphic designer fished out the strangely shaped flake, had it lacquered and put it up for sale on eBay.

More than 40 offers poured in from around the world, most from one bidder. The bidding opened at $16, according to the Associated Press, and closed late Tuesday at $1,035. Doyle did not reveal the identity of the victor.

Steven Spielberg's 1982 film "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial," the tale of a lovable alien befriended by a 10-year-old Earthling, became a cult sensation.

The cereal sale follows last week's eBay sale of a 10-year-old, partly eaten grilled-cheese sandwich said to bear an image of the Virgin Mary. The crusty relic went for $28,000.

"I was just trying to find someone who feels the same way about E.T. as they do about the Virgin Mary," Doyle told The Daily Telegraph. The Sydney resident called the morsel "truly amazing, one of a kind," and said the thumbnail-size piece of cuddly cereal had not been altered or manipulated in any way.

Then again, it's not too hard to find E.T.-look-alikes in a bowl of Nutri-Grain, according to an unscientific study conducted by the cereal editors at the Telegraph.

The lesson? If you're in need of a few extra bucks, you might want to examine your Wheaties a little more closely from now on.