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Lightning Bolt Shaped Meteorite Endcut

About the Item

“This jagged exterior endcut of the Seymchan pallasite has patches of olivine-free metallic iron-nickel as well as regions where olivine and metal are more uniformly distributed. The olivine grains crystallized in the lower mantle of a differentiated asteroid; they settled to the top of the molten iron-nickel core. Because large meteorites have low surface-area/volume ratios, endcuts are much rarer than interior slices and are seldom offered for sale.” Dr Alan E. Rubin, PhD Department of Earth, Planetary, and Space Sciences, UCLA This magnificent exterior section from the pallasite meteorite Seymchan was recovered from the bed of the river Hekandue in the Russian Far East. It preserves the textured exterior of the meteorite whilst also offering a view the interior, revealing the honeycomb-like structure characteristic of pallasites, with gems of semi-precious olivine embedded in shimmering iron-nickel metallic crystals. The lower section shows the geometric pattern of interlocking iron-nickel crystals, known as the Widmanstätten pattern. Pallasites are extremely rare, comprising less than 0.2% of known falls. These stony-irons formed at the very beginning of our solar system, fragments of an asteroid which differentiated, like our own planet, into a mantle and a core. Originating from the transitional core-mantle boundary, they were set free by a large collision which propelled them out of the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter and into an Earth-bound orbit. As well as being extraordinarily beautiful they are scientifically invaluable, helping us to understand the formation and structure of our planet, whose core is made of the same iron and nickel. SEYMCHAN - EXTERIOR SECTION STONY-IRON, PALLASITE - PMG 12 1/4 INCHES (31.11 CM), 1.12 KG Provenance: Discovered in 1967, Magadan District, Russia (62° 54’ N, 152° 26’ E). Published: Meteoritical Bulletin, no. 43, Moscow (1968). ArtAncient, Extraterrestrial (2022).
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 12.21 in (31 cm)Width: 4.34 in (11 cm)Depth: 1.58 in (4 cm)
  • Materials and Techniques:
  • Period:
  • Date of Manufacture:
    circa 4.5 Billion Years Old
  • Condition:
  • Seller Location:
    London, GB
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: 427871stDibs: LU1052233749102
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