Goldberg Coins and Collectibles



Sale 24


 
 
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Lot 685

Whole Stony Meteorite, Juancheng, From China. Although most meteorites that fall to earth are stony meteorites, whole intact stony meteorites are rarely encountered since most finds consist of a single meteorite weighing a few pounds at most. Meteorites are named after the city or region where they fall and collector demand is so high to own a piece of a named fall that the meteorite found is usually cut up and polished to satisfy this demand. Also, the fusion crust (the burned, brown to black thin outer layer fro the intense heat of passage through the atmosphere) quickly weathers away and thus makes it difficult to identify a meteorite.

This 680 gram specimen (4½ x 3 inches) has over 90% of its original dark brown fusion crust with a few areas missing that show its internal structure high in iron and chondrules, which are small, near spherical, silicate grains that were part of the interstellar cloud that condensed to form all the plants, moons, and asteroids.

This meteorite fell to earth on February 15, 1997, on farmland near the Yellow River in the Shandong Province of China. The large stony meteorite (called an ordinary chondrite) exploded 8-10 miles above the surface, resulting in most recovered specimens being quite small. This 1¼ pound specimen is one of the larger pieces available of the recent Juancheng meteorite that was believed by the Chinese to portend the death of the sick Chairman Deng Xiao Peng, who died several days after this meteorite fell.
Estimated Value $950 - 1,500.

 
Realized $1,150



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