![]() In a presentation that enhances Fukang’s allure, this specimen is cut and polished to a mirror finish on three faces. This is an honor Pallas is fortunate to have received, for he believed the unusual specimen he examined could not possibly have come from outer space - but to be fair, he lived at a time when most scientists did not believe rocks could fall out of the sky (see lot 19). The term pallasite is in honor of the German scientist, Peter Pallas, who while traveling through Siberia, examined the first pallasitic mass in the early 1770s. Crystals of olivine and peridot (gem-quality olivine) from the mantle are suspended in an iron-nickel matrix that had been part of the asteroid’s molten core. Recovered in China’s Gobi Desert, Fukang contains some of the largest and most translucent crystals of any pallasite, which represent the mantle-core boundary of an asteroid that broke apart after a catastrophic collision with a second asteroid. If it was a Martian meteorite, that would be different.Lot 10 | THE MOST BEAUTIFUL EXTRATERRESTRIAL SUBSTANCE KNOWN - END PIECE OF THE FUKANG METEORITE Pallasites are not only rare, representing less than 0.2% of all known meteorites, they are also widely considered the most dazzling otherworldly substance known - and samples of Fukang are among the most coveted. We have studied lots of meteorites of this kind. “It came from the core-mantle boundary of an asteroid. “This kind of meteorite has been studied and has little new to tell us,” Doherty told the Chronicle. But Paul Doherty - the senior scientist at the time for the Exploratorium museum in San Francisco - said that the furor over Fukang fragments pointed to collectors’ fascination with its aesthetics - not necessarily its scientific value. Maine Mineral & Gem Museum, was settled that same year. They say Settgast has their rock and their money, too. Stifler and McFadden said a no-museum promise was never part of the deal. Settgast said that violated the terms of the sale. Settgast maintained he was reclaiming the rock because the couple planned to put it on public display at their under-construction museum in Maine. It was a clear case of meteorite-napping, said the spurned buyers. Settgast went to the Jenkersons’ studio and, while they were away at a rock show, entered the premises and took back the meteorite. According to the newspaper:Īfter the rock polishers, Keith and Dana Jenkerson of Osawatomie, Kan., who had been hired to spiff up the meteorite for its new owners, said they thought it was worth perhaps $1 million, Settgast decided he wanted his rock back, the Massachusetts couple say. But as the San Francisco Chronicle reported in 2016, the fight began after Settgast had sent the fragment to a second couple to be polished. Settgast had sold his fragment to McFadden and Stifler for $425,000. Years later, a legal battle ensued over another piece of the meteorite between a California man, Stephan Settgast, and a Massachusetts couple, Lawrence Stifler and Mary McFadden in 2014. According to NPR, Killgore saw his Fukang piece sell at auction for almost $3 million in 2008. FUKANG METEORITE FULLThe present slice, resembling a silvery sky full of green stars, is one of the finest and most elegant of all samples of Fukang, being cut from the most beautiful, olivine-rich section at the heart of the mass.Ī photograph of a man holding one of the fragments is also legitimate it belongs to “plumber-turned-meteorite hunter” Marvin Killgore. It was split into 5 sections, with one now residing at the University of Arizona. Three Thousand Year Old Statue Found in Cappadociaĭiscovered in the Gobi Desert of China in 2000, the Fukang meteorite weighed more than 2200 lbs. Pallasites are the rarest of all meteorites, and the Fukang pallasite meteorite is known for being the most beautiful of all, full of large translucent gemstone crystals embedded in an iron-nickel matrix. Beyond its popularity online, the rare pallasite meteorite (meaning that its core is composed of iron and a silicate known as olivine) has attracted interest from collectors since its discovery.Ī listing for Sotheby’s Auction House recapped part of its history on Earth: Some iterations of the meme mistakenly say that it was discovered in 2008, but otherwise its existence is legitimate. This Fukang meteorite is 4.5 billion years old and weighs over 2,000 pounds. In many iterations, the text accompanying photos of a fragment of the meteorite reads: In this case, the Fukang Meteorite (named after the Chinese town where it was discovered) has become a recurring meme online. Advertisements The journey of a rare type of meteorite to Earth has continued online, albeit with the details fudged over time. ![]()
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