The Bone Room
The Bone Room is a privately held Berkeley, California-based natural history retailer founded in 1987 that sells fossils, bones, minerals, insects, and curiosities through its e-commerce site and a physical Amber Room location, serving individual collectors, educational institutions, and gift buyers.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1987
- HeadquartersBerkeley, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What The Bone Room does
The Bone Room is a privately held, independently operated specialty retailer founded in 1987 by Ron Cauble and headquartered in Berkeley, California. The company sells natural history curiosities and specimens — including human and animal skulls, articulated skeletons, individual bones, fossils, minerals, meteorites, insects, aquatic specimens, and archaeological artifacts — alongside a curated gift shop of jewelry, home décor, and lifestyle items. It serves natural history collectors, hobbyists, educational institutions, and gift buyers seeking authentic specimens or museum-quality replicas, with educational content embedded in product descriptions explaining geological periods and specimen origins.
The business operates primarily through a direct-to-consumer e-commerce storefront (boneroom.com) with phone sales support, complemented by a separate physical retail location known as The Bone Room Amber Room. The company carries no external investors, no parent company, and no disclosed funding. Revenue is generated from one-time unit sales across a wide price spectrum — from $2 small accessories to $12,500+ premium specimens like Ammolite — supported by a flat $10 shipping policy (free over $200) and gift certificates in $10–$2,000 denominations. The catalog structure spans roughly 12+ product categories, with no software products, APIs, or digital platforms.
The underlying technology is a standard website-based e-commerce platform with social sharing buttons, a monthly newsletter, and standard checkout. No AI/ML capabilities, proprietary technology, patents, trademarks, or third-party integrations are disclosed. The firm employs 11–50 people and is privately held under the legal entity The Bone Room INC, with US operations and restricted international shipping for wildlife-regulated materials.
The Bone Room firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The Bone Room
- Legal name
- The Bone Room INC
- Website
- https://boneroom.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1987
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- The Bone Room is a privately held Berkeley, California-based natural history retailer founded in 1987 that sells fossils, bones, minerals, insects, and curiosities through its e-commerce site and a physical Amber Room location, serving individual collectors, educational institutions, and gift buyers.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where The Bone Room is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Berkeley
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
The Bone Room business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Retail E-commerce Sales: Direct retail sales of natural history specimens including human bones, animal specimens, fossils, minerals, meteorites, insects, and jewelry through the company's e-commerce website. One-time product purchases at various price points.
- Gift Certificates: Digital and physical gift cards sold in increments of $10, $25, $50, $100 and up. No expiration date, no processing fees.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Unit pricing across all product categories |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels3 records
The Bone Room product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Bone Room is a specialty natural history retailer that curates and sells authentic and replica specimens — including human skulls and skeletons, animal skulls/bones, fossils, minerals, meteorites, preserved insects, aquatic specimens, archaeological artifacts, anatomical teaching models, and a curated gift/lifestyle line — primarily through its own e-commerce website (boneroom.com), with a supplementary physical retail store known as The Bone Room Amber Room. Offerings are sold as individual items at varied price points (from $2 novelty items to $12,500+ rare fossils and specimens), with gift certificates available in fixed denominations.
Product overview
The Bone Room is an e-commerce natural history store offering a diverse catalog of specimens and curiosities rather than a unified software product. The core offerings span multiple distinct product categories: Human and Animal Specimens (skulls, skeletons, bones), Fossil Specimens (including Fossil Dishware sub-category), Insect Specimens (framed and in Lucite), Mineral Specimens (crystals, gemstones), Meteorites, Casts & Replicas (teaching and museum quality), Archeology & Anthropology artifacts, Aquatic Specimens (shells, marine items), and a Gift Shop/Lifestyle category featuring jewelry and home décor. Additional services include Gift Certificates. The store operates as a traditional e-commerce platform without software products, APIs, or digital platforms.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- The Bone Room Amber Room: A physical location associated with The Bone Room, mentioned as closed for a few weeks with plans to reopen
Products and services
- Human Specimens Category offering human skulls (normal, pathological, fetal & child), articulated and disarticulated human skeletons, and individual human bones and sets for educational and collector markets.
- Animal Specimens Category featuring animal skulls, complete animal skeletons, and assorted animal bones for collectors and educational purposes.
- Fossil Specimens Extensive fossil collection including dinosaur remains, mammoth specimens, ammonites, trilobites, and one-of-a-kind fossils from various geological periods.
- Fossil Dishware Decorative items crafted from fossiliferous limestone including bowls, plates, coasters, and dishes featuring Orthoceras, Goniatite, and other fossil specimens.
- Insect Specimens Preserved and framed insects including beetles, butterflies, and specimens encased in Lucite for display and collection.
- Mineral Specimens Geological specimens including crystals, gemstones, amethysts, meteorites, tektites, and carved stone items for collectors and educational use.
- Meteorites Extraterrestrial specimens including Gibeon, Swedish, and other meteorite specimens, often crafted into jewelry and pendants.
- Casts & Replicas Museum-quality and teaching-quality casts of prehistoric and modern specimens including dinosaur skeletons, human anatomy, and archaeological finds when originals are unavailable.
- Archeology & Anthropology Ancient artifacts including Roman glassware, coins, cylinder seals, figurines, and archaeological finds from various civilizations.
- Aquatic Specimens Marine specimens including shells, nautilus, stingray barbs, sea urchins, and other aquatic natural history items.
- The Gift Shop / Lifestyle Products Curated gift items including jewelry, home décor, toys, books, and novelty items featuring natural history themes.
- Gift Certificates Digital and printable gift cards available in denominations from $10 to $2,000 with no expiration or processing fees.
- Anatomical Models Artistically-made anatomical models showing humans from skeleton outward, ideal for reference, teaching, or study, including detachable organ models.
Companies that use The Bone Room
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
The Bone Room technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
The Bone Room partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators2 records
Recent moves4 records
Expansion highlights3 records
The Bone Room competitors and assessment
Company assessmentMarket position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat2 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
The Bone Room social profiles
Digital presenceThe Bone Room financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The Bone Room leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
The Bone Room funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
The Bone Room M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about The Bone Room
What does The Bone Room do?
The Bone Room is a specialty natural history retailer that curates and sells authentic and replica specimens — including human skulls and skeletons, animal skulls/bones, fossils, minerals, meteorites, preserved insects, aquatic specimens, archaeological artifacts, anatomical teaching models, and a curated gift/lifestyle line — primarily through its own e-commerce website (boneroom.com), with a supplementary physical retail store known as The Bone Room Amber Room. Offerings are sold as individual items at varied price points (from $2 novelty items to $12,500+ rare fossils and specimens), with gift certificates available in fixed denominations.
Is The Bone Room a public or private company?
The Bone Room is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was The Bone Room founded?
The Bone Room was founded in 1987. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is The Bone Room based?
The Bone Room is headquartered in Berkeley, United States, in the North America region.
How does The Bone Room make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Retail E-commerce Sales are the primary driver. The others are gift Certificates.
Does The Bone Room have an API?
No public API is recorded for The Bone Room.