Tuesday 8 March 2011

[brmeteorites_list] List 100 - after Tucson stuff

Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487 
LIST 100
March 8, 2011

Dear Collectors,

Here, finally, is an after Tucson offering. I have had tons of projects to deal with (one major meteorite related the others not) and yet a further estate to deal with. This last thing will have me gone starting about Wednesday the 16th for a week or so back in Phoenix (I am rapidly running out of "elderly" relatives it seems, so I would expect this problem to start abating soon). 

Please try to contact me fairly soon if you see anything here you want. This is partially so I can get sold things off and on their way to buyers before I leave and largely so I can do my final settlements with consignors (many, but not all, of the items here were consigned to me for the show) and get what doesn't sell on its way back home to the owners.

ALLENDE, Mexico: Carbonaceous (CV3.2). Fell February 8, 1969.
This is a large fragment (only a small patch of crust visible). BUT, it is a labeled Nininger specimen (818.98) that was listed in the 1985 "Catalog of Meteorites in the Collection of Arizona State University" (I'll include a copy of the cover and the page listing this -–I have only the one actual catalog and I do use it quite regularly for looking up some of the more recent Nininger numbers). It has been suggested that this may be listed in the most recent Nininger catalog (which I don't have) before he passed the collection on to ASU. I got this in a trade over 20 years ago (can't remember just what I gave for it) and have had it in storage ever since (so long in fact, that I forgot the piece's origin and originally thought the numbers on it were its weight). I am offering this to help pay for my big meteorite related project (more on that in the future), or this would likely remain safely in storage for another few years (decades?). Again, only a tiny bat of crust, but it is loaded with LOTS of large CAI's. 
965.8 gram Niniger numbered fragment - 135mm x 90mm x 40mm - $7500

BILANGA: Burkina Faso: (Diogenite). Fell October 27, 1999. Tkw = 25+ kg.
Here are some almost thin-section slices (some light will pass through parts of these!) in mylar display boxes. I am NOT going to risk pulling these out for measuring thickness or weight (same goes for the other similarly prepared items on this and future lists). The measurements are simply the rough dimensions of the surface area of each specimen. 
1) Thin slices in mylar box.
a) 16mm x 11mm - $15
b) 19mm x 15mm - $25
c) 21mm x 16mm - $30 – has 13mm of crust along one edge.

CAMEL DONGA, Australia: (Eucrite). Found 1984. Tkw = 30+ kg.
Here a few really nice complete individuals of this popular (and likely to be more popular once we start orbiting Vesta later this year) meteorite. These are likely "late" recoveries, but are either picked up quite some time ago or are superb specimens from a very large batch of recent found material (this stuff has a high amount of free iron and does oxidize fairly rapidly out in the elements. It is apparent that the fall must have not been long before its discovery in 1984. The first pieces were all super fresh and glassy. Pieces picked up even a few years later started to show strong weathering effects). These are all complete and are covered with black crust and generally only show minor areas of dirt or dimming of the crust. 
1) Complete individuals:
a) .77 grams – 11mm x 10mm x 4m - $23
b) 1.45 grams – 11mm x 11mm x 7mm - $40
c) 4.22 grams – 19mm x 10mm x 9mm - $110 – lots of heavy flow lines.
d) 6.59 grams – 20mm x 16mm x 11mm - $175 – super glossy crust.
e) 9.32 grams – 25mm x 20mm x 10mm - $250 – also really glossy.

DAR AL GANI (735), Libya: Martian (Shergottite). Found 1997. Tkw = 588 grams.
This is quite obviously a pairing to DaG (476). This has the usual small angular dark brown to black clasts (olivine, I believe) in a jade-green matrix. There is not a lot of this material available any more and, given the unrest in Libya, it is not highly likely that many will go out looking for more for some time.
.835 gram slice – 17mm x 14mm x 1mm - $700

IRIDIUM: The element.
Here is a serious batch for the serious element collector (or speculator, perhaps. This stiff seems to be going up in value almost faster than I can keep track of it). This is more of the fine crystals salvaged from the furnace that produces Yag laser crystals. These are quite a bit smaller than what I had offered on a list earlier (and were all I could get when I rapidly sold out of those specimens). I have 1 troy ounce of this in a screw lid "make up" container (the same as I use for storing small watch parts). I am actually pricing this a tiny bit below iridium's current "spot" value (which was $1025 when I just checked it while typing this).
1 troy ounce of powder/ small crystals - $1000

KORRA KORRABES, Namibia: (H3). Found 1996. Tkw = 130+kg.
This is a really nice slice. It is much fresher than any of the other pieces I have had (even fresher than the few Gao specimens I have cut). This also shows a really nice breccia texture; with angular to rounded light gray clasts in a light tan to brown matrix. I have heard rumor that some believe that this may actually represent a all different from the actual Korra Korrabes, but I would find it a bit a stretch (but not impossible) to find two H3 meteorites overlapping.
79.7 gram slice (one cut edge) – 77mm x 45mm x 6mm - $120

MILLBILLILLIE, Australia: (Eucrite). Fell October, 1960. Tkw = 150+ kg.
Here are a couple more super thin slices (the smaller actually passes some light through some areas!) in mylar boxes. These are both quite nice and each has one nice edge of fusion crust.
1) Thin slices in a mylar box:
a) 17mm x 15mm - $20
b) 20mm x 20mm - $30

NWA (1774): rumurutiite (R3.8-6). Found 2002. Tkw = 714 grams.
This, like the Bilanga above, is cut super thin. This is something I wish I had a lot of larger pieces of (I do have a few cut fragments of a likely paired meteorite, but not many). It has a fantastic breccia texture, with many lots of clasts of various shades and colors in a light brown matrix.
1) Thin slices in a mylar box:
a) 15mm x 10mm - $15
b) 22mm x 16mm - $25
c) 24mm x 23mm - $30

NWA (4662): (Angrite). Found June 2005. Tkw = about 400 grams.
I have quite a few people asking for angrites lately. Unfortunately, this is the ONLY piece I have. It is consigned so I cannot take to the saw either. This is a rather nice solid natural fragment/ individual (though I would hesitate to call any of the surface fusion crust, all surfaces are ancient. NO recent fracturing on this specimen). 
10.6 gram natural fragment – 25mm x 20mm x 12mm - $950

SACRAMENTO WASH (003), Arizona: (H4). Found March 22, 2004. Tkw = 89.2 grams.
Here is something special for the Arizona collector (or "main mass" collector). This is the entire mass remeiing after research of this meteorite (and it has not been paired with anything else!). This is a 62.2 gram individual (rounded enough that it is clearly not merely a fragment of something larger) with one end cut of to show the mottled medium to dark brown interior.
62.2 gram "Main Mass" – 35mm x 25mm x 28mm - $900