A skinning apparatus for skinning fur animals, especially minks, which have been cut open along and between the legs and from which the skin has been loosened and freed from the rear portion of the body and the rear legs and the tail, said apparatus comprising - a frame having a front, a rear, a top and a bottom - a body-clamping device for clamping said legs and/or rear portion of the body freed for the skin in a start and body-clamping position and being accessible at the front, - a skin clamping device for clamping the skin freed from the body and being by means of a skin moving means arranged for a downwardly and rearwardly movement of the skin-clamping device between an upper start and skin-clamping position and a lower position at a distance from the upper skin-clamping position and in which the skin has been completely separated from the body, - the skin-clamping device being in the upper skin-clamping position positioned adjacent to the body-clamping device and being accessible at the front, wherein - the skin-clamping device comprises an upper fixed jaw and a lower displaceable jaw being displaceable away from and towards the fixed jaw between an open position and a closed clamping position - the upper fixed jaw is a forwardly open jaw comprising a pair of arms (23a,23b) shaped to define a forwardly open cavity with a forwardly facing opening and having a lower clamping face and an inner surface defining the forwardly open cavity shaped and dimensioned to receive the body portion freed from skin - the lower displaceable jaw is a forwardly open jaw comprising a pair of arms (28a,28b) shaped to define a forwardly open cavity with a forwardly facing opening and having an upper clamping face and an inner surface defining the forwardly open cavity shaped and dimensioned to receive the body portion not being freed from skin - the upper clamping surface of the lower displaceable jaw is in the open position thereof spaced from the lower clamping surface of the upper fixed jaw to receive the freed skin portion between said clamping faces. - a frame having a front, a rear, a top and a bottom - a body-clamping device for clamping said legs and/or rear portion of the body freed for the skin in a start and body-clamping position and being accessible at the front, - a skin clamping device for clamping the skin freed from the body and being by means of a skin moving means arranged for a downwardly and rearwardly movement of the skin-clamping device between an upper start and skin-clamping position and a lower position at a distance from the upper skin-clamping position and in which the skin has been completely separated from the body, - the skin-clamping device being in the upper skin-clamping position positioned adjacent to the body-clamping device and being accessible at the front, wherein - the skin-clamping device comprises an upper fixed jaw and a lower displaceable jaw being displaceable away from and towards the fixed jaw between an open position and a closed clamping position - the upper fixed jaw is a forwardly open jaw comprising a pair of arms (23a,23b) shaped to define a forwardly open cavity with a forwardly facing opening and having a lower clamping face and an inner surface defining the forwardly open cavity shaped and dimensioned to receive the body portion freed from skin - the lower displaceable jaw is a forwardly open jaw comprising a pair of arms (28a,28b) shaped to define a forwardly open cavity with a forwardly facing opening and having an upper clamping face and an inner surface defining the forwardly open cavity shaped and dimensioned to receive the body portion not being freed from skin - the upper clamping surface of the lower displaceable jaw is in the open position thereof spaced from the lower clamping surface of the upper fixed jaw to receive the freed skin portion between said clamping faces.