Blaine Reed Meteorites For Sale- List 275- more after Denver plus 12NOV2024

Blaine Reed Meteorites For Sale- List 274- more after Denver plus 12NOV2024

Blaine Reed Meteorites
P.O. Box 1141, Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
brmeteorites@yahoo.com


Dear Collectors,

This is another offering of things I picked up in Denver (and one from back in Tucson) and odd things I found while doing what inventory work I have accomplished so far.

Chinga, Russia- Ataxite
click on image to enlarge

CHINGA, Russia: Iron. Ungrouped. Anomalous Ni-rich Ataxite. Found 1913.
It has been awhile since I have had a piece of this meteorite. My last “pieces” were slices and that was around 4 or 5 years ago. This is a nice complete individual. I seem to recall some of these things liking to rust scale. Not this one. It spent most of its “collector” life in a collection out East, in a NOT dry area. A couple of the Canyon Diablo specimens I got with this were in pretty rough shape. This is nice and solid, no evidence of rust scaling. This has a nice a pleasant chocolate brown color with nice smooth surfaces. A great, solid, fill your hand kind of specimen.
1305.2 gram complete individual – 95mm x 80mm x 45mm - $1500

click on image to enlarge

ADMIRE, Kansas: stony-iron (Pallasite). Found 1881.
This is the piece I actually picked up in Tucson. It kind of got misplaced (put with other things it shouldn’t have) so I forgot I even had it until re-discovering it while doing some recent inventory work (I am starting that tedious process early this year). Actually, “loosing” this piece for months is a good thing. I get a little nervous about selling pieces of this meteorite as some just really, really want to fall apart. This one has not had any special storage conditions what so ever – just sitting in a plastic bag in a beer flat box with some other things. At this point, it has remained perfect. I can see no signs of rust anywhere on the piece (keep in mind though, I do live in a fairly dry environment so you should consider special storage solutions (desiccant, air tight container if possible) if you do not. This is a nice complete slice. One side has been etched and the other has a very light etch but is basically just polished. This has a nice range of crystal sizes, from tiny up to a couple cm or so in size. Several of the larger crystals pass light. A nice piece that has proven itself (in my climate anyway) for the past 10 months.
84.7 gram complete slice – 120mm x 65mm x 3mm - $850

GIBEON, Namibia: Iron. Fine octahedrite (IVA). Found 1836. Tkw = ?? lots.
This used to be the most common, cheapest meteorite you could get (25 years or so ago anyway). I remember selling foot-ball sized individuals of Gibeon for right around $1000 back then. These days, the stuff is not so easy to come by (and expensive when you do). This was a “walk-in” piece at Denver this year. Someone simply walked in with it and asked if I might be interested in buying it. The answer was “yes” and he accepted my offer. These kind of things can really help at what might otherwise be a “slow” or challenging show. This was NOT coated in any way. As such, it had some surface rust (as well as some rust along a natural crack line). It was no trouble to clean this off though. I did that and then (after drying the piece) gave it a good spray coating (so it should be fine from now one – as long as you don’t leave it nest to your shower, hot tub or fish tank anyway). This is a complete slice that has been etched on both sides.
164.9 gram complete slice – 105mm x 70mm x 5mm - $330

KORRA KORRABES, Namibia: Ordinary chondrite (H3). Found 1996. Tkw = about 140kg.
These are a couple end pieces I kind of forgot I had. I knew I had them, they were just in a box with some other things. I have inventoried these piece for years now and always just put them back (thinking that I will cut up the bigger piece into a bunch of nice slices and sell those. I just might end up doing that yet if it does not sell here). I decided that, maybe after 10 or more years of not doing this, I should simply try to sell them (and remove a line from my inventory records). So, I’ll offer them here and now and save myself the cutting and polishing work (maybe). Both are natural fragments as they were found with a cut face. They both show lots of chondrules and breccia fragments (the smaller piece, interestingly is fresher, so things are a little easier to see).
a) 73.0 gram cut fragment – 50mm x 25mm x 23mm - $200
b) 444.0 gram cut fragment – 50mm x 48mm x 60mm - $800

KOSICE, Slovakia: Ordinary chondrite (H5). Fell Feb. 28, 2012. Tkw = 4.3kg.
I got this “left” with me in Denver. A friend dropped it off with me and I put it one of the locked display cases for the show. It (obviously) didn’t sell there (if it did, I would not have it offered here). He left the show before it closed and I agreed to let it stay with me. I didn’t have a lot of hope that it would sell at that show (not many actual collectors showed up this year) but figured I could offer it from home (and return it to him when I see him in Tucson, if I still have it). I have pretty much no experience with this meteorite. I don’t believe I have ever had a piece of it before. It IS a reasonably important meteorite though. Its fall was recorder by camera networks (that aided in its recovery) and not a lot was found (the Met Bull reports that 77 stones were recovered. The largest one makes up just over half the total recovered weight on its own). This is an individual as found. It does have a roughly 22mm x 8mm broken area (late fall break or maybe from hitting something hard on the ground) but is otherwise fully covered in nice thick fusion crust. The broken area does show oxidation (not surprising for an H type that spent some time in a wet environment before it was picked up) but the fusion crust shows only minor orange spotting.
29.7 gram complete individual – 28mm x 23mm x 20mm - $500

SIKHOTE-ALIN, Russia: Iron. Coarsest octahedrite (IIB). Fell February 12, 1947.
This is a lot nicer piece than I had originally given it credit for when I bought it. At first glance, you can see it is a nicely thumb-printed individual. You can also see that it has some browning to it (from a very light dusting of oxidation. So thin, I really wouldn’t call it “rust”. Some of it looks almost like the reddish/ purple “smoke” areas on some Allende individuals). Looking just a bit more though, it becomes obvious that this is a really, really nice oriented specimen (this is hidden a bit by the fact that the “back side” also has a lot of thumb-printing). This has a really nice (and clear, once you actually bother to look at it) fusion crust roll-over rim all the way around it. This piece look like someone might have attempted to lightly clean it at some point in the past (just an area on the bottom/ back) but is, overall, fully original un-messed-with condition (and I’d suggest leaving it as such). One note: I am pricing this (per gram) a bit less than the Russians were asking for average, small fusion crusted individuals at this past Denver show.
337.9gram oriented individual – 60mm x 50mm x 30mm - $1900

WILUNA, Australia: Ordinary chondrite (H5). Fell September 2, 1967. Tkw = 150kg.
This is another specimen that was left with me at the show. Years ago (like 25 to 30 years) I used to get this fairly often. It was not cheap (compared to other things, like Tenham) but it was not really expensive either. This is a piece that came from Geoff Notkin (Aerolite Meteorites) at some point (and comes with its Aerolite Meteorites label). This is really a classic example of this meteorite. This is basically a complete individual. It does have a small (roughly 18mm x 5mm) broken area that shows the light tan interior (which contrasts nicely with the fusion crust around it). The rest of the stone is completely crusted. The crust does have some signs oxidation. Not a lot, but this does help show off the contraction cracking in the crust (these lines form when the glass that is the crust cools. It shrinks a tiny bit and that can result in an interesting kind of geometric crack structure. Think “mud cracks” on a tiny scale.
63.6 gram individual – 42mm x 30mm x 28mm - $950

Shipping:
US Shipping: I can still send my typical “small” orders (item in a jewelry box in a padded envelope) for $5. Actually, it costs me closer to $6, but $5 is ok for now (I am not trying to make $ on “shipping and handling”). Now, this method though is “ground”. So far, it seems to get things where they need to be just as fast as “first-class” did (which was supposedly mostly air). For those that feel better using “Priority” mail, starting costs are right around $10 (small flat-rate box). I’ll probably need to custom quote larger things but I’d think that $18 (medium flat-rate box) would likely be the upper limit (I don’t have many things that would require even a medium flat-rate box).

For overseas shipping, it does look like the “First Class” option still exists, thankfully. However that last overseas thing I shipped (a couple weeks ago to Europe) it seems that “First-Class” rates have risen quite drastically. I think for an order that fit in a small priority flat-rate box first class would have been something like $35. For that order, we decided on priority (largely because the overall value was above the $400 limit for first-class) which ran $48. Overall, Ill need to custom quote pretty much any out of country orders.

Blaine Reed Meteorites- LIST 265- 24AUG2023

Blaine Reed Meteorites
P.O. Box 1141, Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
brmeteorites@yahoo.com

LIST 265 - August 24, 2023

Dear Collectors

Here is a modest offering of some things that I have had here for some time but have not had a lot of time to catalog/ sort out. This will be my only offering until sometime after the Denver show (coming waaaayy to soon) – notes on that below).

Denver Show: I will be at my normal spot – Crowne Plaza (15500 E. 40th Ave – I-70 and Chambers Rd) in the “Frisco” meeting room (on the WEST side of the actual Convention center building – near the actual Hotel building). I will (or should) be open from Friday morning the 8th until Saturday afternoon (the 16th). I am scheduled to be open at 10am but will try to be open a bit earlier than that most days. My official closing time is 6pm but I do hang around and keep the door open however late (within reason) people are visiting (PLEASE NOTE, if you are wanting to visit “after hours” you will likely have to got through the hotel lobby doors as they often turn off and lock the doors that are right next to my show space). I will be “on the road” for this trip from around the 5th until the 18th. I’ll be VERY swamped once I get back home as it looks like I may have to unload and then turn right around an head back over the mountains to Wichita, Kansas (the guy I get my watch repair parts from is looking to retire and is getting pretty insistent that I go out to their NAWCC watch/ clock convention (starting on the 20th!!!) to buy whatever parts I think I might need or risk, in the future, going without). Basically, this whole next month is going to be a big, difficult mess for me.



ABADLA (002), Algeria: Carbonaceous chondrite (CM2). Found 2021, Tkw = 800 grams.
Here is about the only “affordable” CM2 that I am aware of. I have only a few crumbs of Murchison, sold all of my Aguas Zarcas. I’d love to sit on these pieces and wait to see what the asteroid return missions (one back already, one back soon) shows what those asteroids are made of. IF it is basically this kind of stuff, expect a pretty good run on all things CM2 (or CI1??). These are all the “usual” small fragments/ individuals as found.
1) Natural fragment:
a) .54 grams – 11mm x 7mm x 5mm - $35
b) .84 grams – 12mm x 9mm x 7mm - $50
c) 1.07 grams – 14mm x 8mm x 6mm - $65
d) 1.20 grams – 15mm x 10mm x 6mm - $70

ADMIRE, Kansas: Stony-iron (Pallasite).
I don’t remember exactly where I got this, just know it has been quite a long time now. This looks to be a “cleaned” (tumble polished?) individual of this meteorite. I didn’t know that many small individuals were actually found. This is actually quite pretty (I just don’t need it collecting dust at the back of a shelf here any more as it has for the last decade or so). It has obvious large somewhat gemmy olivine crystals in a blue-gray looking (on the exterior anyway) metal matrix. A nice piece that I wish I had bought a bunch of IF it was available affordably back when I got it. I have not had trouble with this rusting BUT I would recommend keeping it in a sealed desiccant container if you live in a humid area.
24.7 gram cleaned individual – 40mm x 28mm x 17mm - $150

DAR AL GANI (400), Lunar meteorite (anorthositic breccia). Found 1998,Ttkw = 1425 grams.
Boy oh boy do I remember when this discovery was reported. I think it happened right AFTER I paid $87k for a piece of the DaG (262) that was about the size of a nickel (and not much thicker). I think it might have been right before I got that piece in my hands and prepared it for selling. Nervous time indeed (were many kilos about to found, flooding the market making my little 262 nickel worth a fraction of what I paid?????). Anyway, the DaG 400 did come out but there was never a lot of it available. This piece IS the piece I picked up for myself at the time (much larger surface area than the small DaG 262 piece I kept for myself (and still have). Not super exciting these days, given the volume of Lunars available now but still a historic and interesting little piece.
.243gram slice – 20mm x 7mm x 1mm - $250

NAGJIR (001), Western Sahara. Carbonaceous chondrite (CV3). Found 2012, Tkw 4.8kg.
Here are a few slices of a nice, really classic looking CV3. These are this, show lots of chondrules and even a few of the CAI inclusions fluoresce a bit (pink/ purple).
1) Slices:
a) 7.5 grams – 48mm x 40mm x 1.5mm - $110
b) 12.2 grams – 90mm x 38mm x 1.5mm - $170
c) 15.9 grams – 110mm x 45mm x 1.5mm - $200




NWA (10401): Lunar meteorite (anorthositic troctolite). Found 2015. Tkw 354 grams.
This is kind of different from other lunars I have seen. It kind of looks like a plae green/ tan version of an Aubrite. It has distinct shock veins, many of which are large/ wide enough to have gas bubbles. I remember when this first came out. Being “something new and different” it was NOT particularly cheap (and me, being a cheap ------- ahh skate, I didn’t pick any up at the time). A bit (but only a little) more expensive than some of the other Lunars available BUT definitely interesting and worth the little extra (I’ll be keeping a piece myself). I can break a piece up into smaller pieces if anyone out there wants a smaller piece of this. I just didn’t want to start breaking apart these rather pretty pieces until I had a distinct need to.
1) Slices:
a) 4.3 grams – 30mm x 23mm x 2.5mm - $525
b) 7.3 grams – 35mm x 30mm x 2.5mm - $900 - complete slice
c) 11.3 grams – 47mm x 28mm x 3mm - $1200

SEYMCHAN, Russia: Stony-iron (Pallasite).
Now (unlike the similar Admire above) I do remember where I got this (if not exactly when). I got this as a trade in from a local Tucson collector towards something a bit bigger/ better I had that he wanted (he shows up each year with a small bag of “trade stuff”. He never buys, just trades). This, like the above Admire, does not look like a fragment of a much larger mass (though this one might be ½ of a slightly larger natural piece). Like the Admire above, I am not aware of many small seymchan pieces having been found. This shows a fair amount of visible olivine in the (in this case, mostly brown) metal matrix. This does have some fracturing. I don’t think that this is from it rusting after recovery as much as it is probably freeze-thaw fracturing. These things are found in the far north in an ancient glacial moraine. Being near the surface (where such a small piece would be findable with metal detector equipment) in such an environment would make it highly likely to suffer this fate.
60.7 gram natural fragment – 50mm x 25mm x 20mm - $280

TIGLIT, Morocco: Enstatite achondrite (Aubrite). Fell Dec 9, 2021. Tkw 2.22kg.
I remember the big hoopla when this fell. I had a lot of people telling me to “buy it now” (right after it fell). Well, the price was really high at that point (these days, even a common chondrite fall is many $hundreds/ gram until it is seen if there will be enough to satisfy the “will loose sleep if I don’t own a piece of the new one – will pay (almost” any price to get it” collectors. This one had more going for it. It had (has) a classic Lunar breccia look to it. That is what it was believed to be initially. As such, I seem to recall its price was around $1000/g. IF I were in the area (and had my XRF, I could have sorted this out in about a minute. I would have known it was NOT the world’s first Lunar witnessed fall but a (still quite interesting” Aubrite fall. These are all natural fragments as found. DON’T mix them in with any of your lunar meteorites or you’ll need my help sorting them back out.
1) Natural fragments as found: $175/g
Sizes available: .31g, .75g, 1.33g, 1.69g

Shipping:
Once again, the post office had turned everything upside down as far as shipping costs go (changes were made back in early July). I still can ship small US orders for around $5 BUT that is by way of something they are now calling "Ground Advantage". They have COMPLETELY eliminated "First Class" (which used to be "air-mail"). I have used this a number of times in the last month or so and it does not seem like it is taking all that much longer to get where it needs to be. I am a bit concerned though that being now "Ground" shipping that I may start to see more damaged and lost packages as these will now be mixed in with ALL the large, heavy things that are still going by the old "Parcel post". The problem here is that now, thanks to these changes, the cheapest I can send anything by air is in a small or medium Priority flat-rate box (using my own boxes for anything is drastically more expensive I have found. It seems the Post Office is doing everything they can to "standardize" shipping containers and is forcing us into flat-rate boxes only). So, sending things by air will be a minimum of $10 ($17 for larger things).

As for "Overseas" (any out of US orders) I am not quite certain yet how this effects things, I just know it will. As such, I will have to custom quote shipping on any out of US orders. I suspect though that this will force me to use Priority for these sales with "First Class" no longer existing and no possible "Ground" option available. I suspect I'll be forced into the flat-rate boxes here as well (and those START at nearly $50 for a small!!).

Blaine Reed Meteorites For Sale- List 218- Admire, coins, graphite, etc.18

Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487             
                                                                                                                                 
LIST 218- 
Admire, coins, graphite, etc.


August 21, 2018

Dear collectors,

Once again, I really hesitated to post this offering, as there tend to be very few people interested in meteorites during these (still far too hot where I live) summer days. I know that the entire continent of Europe is almost entirely shut down the month of August as most folks tend to take this month off for vacation (except for the poor folks stuck in the work/ businesses that need to serve all of those vacationers). However, I do have some really neat (all be it generally on the more expensive side) items I picked up months ago that I thought I’d offer up to you my direct customers before they get put out on display at the soon (far too soon) to be here Denver Show.

DENVER SHOW INFO:
I will be gone from home September 4th through the 17th (and possibly a day or two more). I will be at the same spot as last year – Crowne Plaza (just north of I-70 at Chambers Rd - exit #283 – 15500 E. 40th Ave, Denver, CO 80239 for those of you that want to enter the address into a GPS). Some folks were caught by surprise that our show had moved when they went to the old spot (what was the Holiday Inn for decades but then became a Ramada for awhile but may be something different these days) last year and did not find a show. I did get to talk with a few such people, a couple of which never made it to my new location.

The more specifics: My selling space is a conference room called “Frisco” on the West side of the building (near the hotel itself), whereas the “Main entrance” for the big showroom part of the show is on the East side of the conference building structure. If you park on the West side, near the hotel, and come through the glass doors to the right of the sign that says “Conference Center” on the lower building (to the left of the actual hotel entrance) and turn right IMMEDIATELY after passing through those doors, you will be looking right into my showroom. Don’t get confused if you see beautiful slabs of petrified wood displayed along the back wall – Mike Murphy of Murph’s pertified wood (a long time friend) is using that space. The rest of the room is mine. If you do park on the East side of the conference structure, you’ll have a somewhat long and winding walk to reach me (all indoors, so no worries about weather issues, just exercise). Barring any disasters, I should be open by 10am Friday the 7th. If things go well, I may even be open late the afternoon of the 6th. The official show opening time has changed this year. It was 9am last year but is 10am this year. Some folks (those that sell supplies to the dealers) will be open at 9am. As I did fairly well in the mornings last year I will likely try and stick to a 9am opening time myself this year (though it may be a hair later some days. It was a bit difficult to get everything done that needed to be done and open at 9am some days last year). Evenings: I will certainly stay open after the show’s official close of 6pm (being able to do this was the whole point of getting my own selling room). Last year I did not have a lot of visitors after hours. But then, I didn’t realize that they’d be locking those Conference Center glass doors just outside my door right around 6:30 either. I didn’t get the chance to warn people of this last year (so I am sure many folks simply turned around and left when they found those doors locked. Unfortunately, you really can’t see into my room and see that I am still open from outside those sliding doors either). I plan to stay open until at least 9pm each night, possibly later if folks are still visiting (though, if I hope to open by 9 the next morning, I can’t stay open drastically later). So, if you do come by to visit after 6:30 or so and find the conference center doors already locked, go in through the hotel lobby, turn left after leaving the check-in area, left again when you come to the restaurant area and my room is down the hall another 100 feet maybe. The show officially runs through September 15th. I plan to stay the full length, but will likely close at 6pm on the final day so I can begin the long arduous task of packing.

I will have a cell phone with me but it will only be turned on while I am at the show and as it is a pay by the minute thing I can’t freely chat too much. The number is  (970) 417-8783. I don’t recall how well this worked from inside my selling cage (having no windows, I barely ever got see the sun/ sky the entire show last year) so there may be issues, so don’t get upset if I don’t answer, can’t retrieve messages right away. Regardless, messages may be a problem. In Creede I found that I had a message or two but could not retrieve them. It seems that the message system is demanding a “pass code” for me to do so. I have never needed one before, never asked to change my service this way nor have I been notified of this change (and what ever the “default” pass code is currently). So, if I can’t get this weird issue resolved soon, I may NOT be able to retrieve messages on my phone, unfortunately.

Anyway, on to the list!

LIST 218

ADMIRE, Kansas: Stony-iron (Pallasite). Found 1881.
These are pieces I’ve had laying around uncoated, unprotected for at least a year before I bothered to do anything (polish and coat) with them. They each had some rust but it wasn’t drastic and didn’t seem to be developing any further (and certainly wasn’t doing the oozing, crumbling, crystals falling out thing as many Admire specimens like to do). They have been sitting around out in the open (no special care, storage, etc. Just sitting in a cardboard box in a corner of my office) for at least 6 months since I did the prep work on them. Looking really, really closely (and with a little imagination) you can see a few tiny brown dots on these (but you really do have to look) but no real rusting! However, I do live in a dry (really dry this summer) climate so I’d suggest taking at least some precautions storing these if you live in a humid climate. Regardless, I think these will prove to be among the most stable Admire pieces you have ever had. I have two end pieces and one thick slice. All pieces show multi-colored olivine crystals (with many bright green gemmy ones). The larger end piece has more olivine percentage wise but in generally smaller highly angular pieces whereas the other two specimens have less overall olivine but in larger (and somewhat more gemmy) olivine crystals. Really nice and pretty specimens!a) 136.3 gram end piece – 80mm x 35mm x 15mm - $275
b) 152.3 gram end piece – 70mm x 60mm x 20mm - $300
c) 384.1 gram part slice (has one cut edge) – 130mm x 65mm x 11mm - $750

ANCIENT METEORITE COIN: Seleucid Kings of Syria. Antiochas I. 280 – 261BC.
Nope, these are NOT made out of meteorite (had this misunderstanding quite a lot when I offered these in the past, despite my best attempts to explain otherwise). These are some of the earliest coins that have a DEPICTION of what is supposedly a meteorite on them. In this case, the ‘meteorite” is the pointed rock that the figure (Apollo in this case) is sitting on. Though this “listing” is really for an amazing tetradrachm (a large silver coin that I really, really considered keeping) I do have a few of the (basically same design) small bronze coins for $60 each and one drachm sliver coin (3.73 grams, 15mm diameter) for $300 (these will be with the large silver coin in the group photo).
    Fantastic silver tetradrachm (16.46grams, 30mm diameter) - $800  

DAR Al GANI (749), Libya: Carbobaceous chondrite (CO3). Found 1999. Tkw = around 95 kilograms.
I am pretty certain that the person I got this from got it from me many years ago. While pieces of this (and its many pairings) were commonly available back then, there is not a lot of it (not really any large amounts of any of the Libyan finds really) around now. Anyway, this is a nice natural fragment/ individual (though the shape makes me lean more towards fragment in this case) as found. It has nice smooth surfaces and edges and, thanks to wind-polishing, it is easy to see the internal structure (tiny chondrules) showing that this is indeed a piece of a CO3 meteorite.
    29.6 gram natural fragment as found – 40mm x 30mm x 15mm - $120

DHOFAR (020), Oman: Ordinary chondrite (H4/5). Found 2000. Tkw = around 256 kilograms.
For a weathered meteorite, this is actually a pretty cool specimen. It has a nice dark chocolate brown wind-polished color. It has some large cracks (that still have trapped desert quartz sand grains stuck in them) but yet seems really solid (nope, not going to drop it on a concrete floor to test it though). There is actually quite a lot of obvious (but wind-polished) thumb-printed fusion crust surfaces on this specimen (making up over 50% of the exterior actually) A neat example of a weathered, but easily identifiable (thanks to those fusion crusted surfaces) meteorite.
    738.9 gram individual/ fragment as found – 90mm x 70mm x 60mm - $200

GRAPHITE NODULE: Canyon Diablo, Arizona.
I got these as part of a collection (along with several of the other pieces listed here) I bought back early this spring (and then proceeded to forget about the box these were hidden in). Recently, I had a potential customer contact me and ask about Graphite nodules about a month ago. This reminded me of the “lost” (forgotten) box of collection material (of which I then remembered these were part). I sent off a couple pictures of these specimens (so I do have a couple pictures more of these than just their presence in this offering’s group photo) but never heard back. So, now that I’ve weighed and “cataloged” these, I am going to offer them here and now. One (the largest) is a really nice complete solid nodule as found. The other pieces are end pieces (resulting from splitting another nodule) that show nice metal veining inside (though this feature didn’t show up real well in pictures, despite considerable effort on our part). These are all really nice pieces of an interesting and now rarely seen material these days.a) 26.2 gram end piece – 35mm x 30mm x 15mm - $50
b) 33.7 gram end piece – 38mm x 30mm x 12mm - $60
c) 87.1 gram complete nodule – 40mm x 37mm x 30mm - $130

TUXTUAC, Mexico: Ordinary chondrite (LL5). Fell October 16, 1975. Tkw = 20+ kilograms.
Originally, two pieces totaling 4.25kg were recovered. Later (in 1989) another 25kg piece was found. Robert Haag got this piece but not without some issues. It seems that the folks that had it busted it up into many small fragments trying to find the gold, diamonds, etc that MUST be in the stone to make it worth so much. Of coarse, no such things were in it but we, as collectors, are left with mostly fragments of this meteorite. This is indeed likely one of the fragments that resulted from this “problem”. I say likely because I can’t be certain it is from that 25kg mass or a later piece (I think a couple small pieces turned up later) as this does have some minor weathering to it. This is indeed mostly broken fragment surfaces but it does have a patch of (nicely thumb-printed) fusion crust on one end (I’ll try to capture this in the group photo).     106.2 gram fragment with crust on one end – 60mm x 30mm x 30mm - $700

ZAGORA, Morocco: Silicated iron (IAB). Found 1987. Tkw =  20+ kilograms.
It has been a long while since I have had a piece of this meteorite. I thought about cutting this in half to show the silicated interior but decided to leave it as it is as it has a neat sculpted shape (that likely resulted from the softer silicates eroding away easier than the surrounding iron). This is a complete, as found (right down to the small amount of local dirt still adhering to the piece) specimen. As already mentioned, this has a neat shape with a nice mostly smooth dark chocolate brown surface. A nice piece of a now rarely seen meteorite.    104.3 gram individual as found – 70mm x 25mm x 20mm - $550  

Blaine Reed Meteorites For Sale - List 203 - Last of Tucson Meteorites And More

Blaine Reed Meteorites For Sale - List 203 - Last of Tucson Meteorites And More

Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
……………………………………………………LIST 203

April 19, 2017

Dear collectors,

This is going out a day later than it was really supposed to. I was out of town (for 5 days) visiting the Denver Spring show (among other things). I got to measure what will be my new show room for the fall show so now I have to try and figure out how to fit things in (making it effective and comfortable with the tables and such I have). I got home fairly late Monday and found a huge pile of things needing to be dealt with (nothing slows down while I am gone, unfortunately, it piles up just as quickly as when I am home). I put in a 14 hour day yesterday in an attempt to get caught up (almost, but not completely, there yet) and had no time to pull together and send out an offering. Anyway, here it is, all be it a day late.

ADMIRE, Kansas: (Pallasite). Found 1881.
Here is a nice (but somewhat wedged) complete slice of the more typical Admire texture (lots of olivine of all sizes and colors along with chromite and sulfides). This, like the amazing large olivine cluster slice I had (and sold) on an earlier offering, was handled by Mike Miller before I got it. I cannot have quite the same confidence in this piece as the large olivine chunk one as I have no idea the condition of the main mass it was cut from after sitting unprotected in Arkansas for a number of years. However, I did reach Steve and he said that this slice was cut at the same time as the others (he guessed that it was actually closer to 6 ½ years ago now). Regardless, the fact that this held up as an intact slice long enough in a humid environment to be processed by Mike (dried and coated with opticon and etched on one side) it certainly can’t be too terrible of a piece (my very first piece of Admire I got from Robert Haag many, many years ago fell apart into a pile of crystals and orange goo in under a year – and that was in a fully air-tight case with desiccant. Thankfully, I salvaged a nice clear crystal and had it faceted – my very first space gem stone, which I still have). What I am certain of though is for the months I have had this sitting around here (with no special care) it has remained completely rust spot free.
795.5 gram complete slice – 220mm x 180mm x 5mm - $2500

AGOUDAL, Morocco: Coarsest octahedrite (IIAB). Found 2000.
Here are a few small (but generally larger than I have been able to offer in the past) pieces I got as part of a small collection of irons I picked up in Tucson. These are all wire brushed clean, natural shaped individuals. The smallest and largest have nice sculpted shapes. The mid sized piece does have some sculpting, but not as classic as the other two (and is priced a bit lower accordingly).
1) Wire brushed individuals:
a) 19.1 grams – 40mm x 15mm x 10mm - $19
b) 29.7 grams – 28mm x 25mm x 15mm - $25
c) 41.8 grams – 45mm x 20mm x 12mm - $40

GEBEL KAMIL, Egypt: Ni-rich ataxite (ungrouped). Found 2008.
Here is a nice large natural shrapnel fragment from this now famous impact crater. This does not have much in the way of thin bent, twisted edges but it does have the classic shape and lots of stretch/ tear marks on its surfaces. This material has become really hard to get as the Russians (who were the ones that either had the smarts/ guts or the stupidity to go to the remote and potentially dangerous area) are no longer allowed to go to Egypt (this is putting a serious crimp in the supplies of Libyan Desert Glass as well). I have this particular large specimen priced right at what I was last quoted for a wholesale lot of Gebel pieces the last time I asked (this past Tucson I think). The folks that usually are a main supplier of this stuff had NONE to offer at the Denver Spring show this year so I suspect that there is very little (if any) of this material available from the original sources these days.
1423.4 gram natural shrapnel fragment – 140mm x 70mm x 35mm - $1000

GOMEZ, Texas: Ordinary chondrite (L6). Found 1974. Tkw = 27 kilograms.
Here are a few small part slices from a larger piece I sold to another collector some time ago. They cut the piece roughly in half and kept the larger portion. The other side was cut into smaller specimens such as I have here. I think all of the other pieces have already found homes in other collections. This meteorite is quite fresh showing a fair amount of metal grains in a generally orange to brown mottled matrix. There were some shock melt areas in this stone that were more of a darker green/gray color. It turns out that the smallest piece here was cut from just such an area. The largest piece here has fusion crust along 40mm or so of one of its edges.
1) Part slices:
a) 7.7 grams – 26mm x 14mm x 7mm - $23
b) 19.3 grams – 32mm x 25mm x 7mm - $58
c) 53.0 grams – 55mm x 45mm x 7mm - $159

NWA (998), Morocco: Martian (Nakhalite). Found before September 2001. Tkw = 456 grams.
This is, by far, the largest piece of Nakhlite (of any name or number) I have ever offered. This is a (quite solid) cut fragment/ block that has fusion crust covering its largest surface. NWA (998) is a bit more special than “common” (as if there is really any such thing) Nakhlites and is classified as an anomalous orthopyroxene-bearing Nakhlite. Even more importantly, carbonate minerals that were deposited in this meteorite by water while it was still on Mars have been found throughout specimens of this stone. Unfortunately, this is the last piece of this rare material my source has available (and does not want it broken up) and I only have a few small scraps (.026g to .728g) remaining available in my inventory.
23.3 gram cut, crusted fragment – 27mm x 25mm x 15mm - $23,000

PLAINVIEW (1917), Texas: (H5) breccia. Found 1917, may have fallen 1903.
Here are a couple pieces that were cut from a piece found by Dr. Carleton Moore! He was on a lecture circuit through the area in 2004 (according to his recollection). He stopped in the Plainview area and got permission to look for meteorites for a little while one day. He realized the dream we all have when starting a hunt – quickly finding a meteorite! I am not certain the reasons (a researcher needing a known later find year specimen perhaps) but he cut this stone up recently (keeping the larger end piece for himself). The interior is the classic (H5) breccia Plainview typically shows and, despite being found years after the fall, is still very fresh. I have two specimens available: a complete (but wedge) slice and a really nice end piece that stands up nicely on its own and has nice dark chocolate brown to black crust covering its back-side.
a) 13.8 gram complete slice – 45mm x 30mm x 3mm - $140
b) 91.2 gram end piece – 42mm x 35mm x 20mm - $900

SILVER ANCIENT METEORITE COIN: Antiochas I 280-261BC.
Here is a fantastic super sharp and strong detailed silver version of the bronze ancient meteorite coins I offered on my last mailed offering (list 202 for those of you that receive my e-mail offerings only). I quickly (in one day) sold out of the dozen or so I had of those so I contacted the guy I got the first batch from to see if I could get any more. I was successful (so I do, once again, have some of the $75 bronze coins as offered on that last list if any of you are interested). He included this beauty in the package. I am certain that this is in pretty much as minted condition. Bronze coins were the day to day currency in anceint times whereas silver (and especially gold) coins were generally so valuable that they were often hidden/ buried as longer term savings. Thankfully, this coin was apparently preserved in a sealed container (usually a clay pot) so it was fully preserved. This coin is roughly 18mm in diameter and weighs 4.08 grams. It clearly shows the head of Apollo (in very high relief) on the obverse and the well-centered reverse having Apollo sitting on the Omphalos of Delphi (supposedly a meteorite) with an arrow in one hand and the other hand resting on a bow (all details being super sharp).
Silver ancient “meteorite” coin - $350

Blaine Reed Meteorites For Sale- After Tucson List #2

Blaine Reed Meteorites For Sale- After Tucson List #2

Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
……………………………………………………LIST 201

March 7, 2017

Dear collectors,

Here is “After Tucson” #2

ADMIRE, Kansas: (Pallasite). Found 1881.
This is a little piece that broke off while I was polishing the Admire slice that has the large olivine (the slice offered on the last list. I’ll have another more typical textured large Admire slice on the next list). Mike had opticoned the pieces and etched one side. I then “took ownership” of the pieces before he had the chance to etch the second side. I wanted them simply polished. He didn’t have time before heading off to Tucson (he got there almost a week before I did) so he did not polish them down (which, apparently, is more difficult/ time consuming than etching. But then that is for him. Frankly, I suck at etching). I did the polishing myself and managed to break this little piece off the large olivine chunk off while doing so. This is typical metal and olivine pallasite textured material.
8.9 gram slice – 40mm x 20mm x 3mm - $45  SOLD

CAMPO DEL CIELO, Argentina: Coarse octahedrite (IAB). Found 1576.
Here is a neat large (and thick) etched slice I picked up at the show (I needed a space filler as I sold out of a number of things in the iron section of my table) and wanted something other than Seymchan for an etched iron to show/ sell. Anyway, this is kind of a cool long skinny piece that is etched on both sides. One end has a fairly large (25mm x 20mm) silicate, graphite nodule. A neat display piece.
2695 gam complete etched slice – 300mm x 65mm x 18mm - $1100

GAO, Burkina Faso: (H5). Fell March 5, 1960.
This is a nice complete individual. It (aside from a tiny 3mm late atmospheric chip) is completely covered in thick primary crust. There are some areas of light brown oxidation, but most of the crust is a nice dark slate gray to black.
32.2 gram complete crusted individual – 45mm x 22mm x 18mm - $50

GLORIETTA MOUNTAIN, New Mexico: (Pallasite). Found 1884.
Now here are a couple nice specimens of a meteorite type I have not had in a long time (and it has been far longer since I have had individuals of this find). These are natural complete iron (as most of the recovered material from the find are) individuals. Both clearly show rounded, atmospherically sculpted shapes and both have nice patches of original blue-gray iron fusion crust (before Sikhote-Alin came out, this was about the ONLY meteorite a collector could get that showed this). The smaller specimen is a bit cleaner, smoother than the larger one but both are nice representative specimens of this very hard to come by these days meteorite.
1) Complete individuals as found:
a) 19.3 grams – 28mm x 22mm x 8mm - $290
b) 32.1 grams – 35mm x 19mm x 14mm - $450

KATOL, India: (L6). Fell May 22, 2012. Tkw = about 13 kilograms.
Here is a fresh and wonderful specimen that was left on consignment with me for the show (at a price less than ½ of what I have in the few pieces of this fall I have in my collection and for sale). I came really close to getting this thing sold at the show. Unfortunately, that did not work out and, unfortunately, the owner never came back to pick it up (but then I am sure they knew that I would take it home and try selling it to other customers on line and at other shows). Anyway, this is a super nice nearly complete individual. It has had two edges broken of (probably during the fall) but still has probably better than 75% crust coverage. This crust is thick primary crust and is fresh and black aside from some minor dirt and scuff- marks from its landing.
338.6 gram fresh individual – 60mm x 55mm x 45mm - $5100

MUNDRABILLA, Australia: Medium octahedrite (ungrouped). Found 1911.
This is a nice natural individual I got as part of the small collection if irons I got at the show. This particular piece is quite a bit larger than the typical Mundrabilla specimens I see (which are usually around 50 to 80 grams maybe). This piece has a nice sculpted shape, showing nice thumb-printing in many areas but a more rounded, nodular look (typical of smaller Mundrabilla specimens) in others. Nice piece overall.
164.5 gram natural individual – 63mm x 35mm x 25mm - $140 SOLD

NWA (8043): HED achondrite (Diogenite). Found before July 2013. Tkw = over 1860 grams.
Well, truthfully, this particular specimen was obviously cut from one of the pairings to NWA (8043). My largest piece (from the actual 1860g batch that made up NWA (8043)) was only around 50 or 60 grams I think (certainly nowhere large enough to cut a fantastic specimen like this). This amazing super thin slice was cut from a MUCH larger specimen. This piece is cut thin enough that light passes through pretty much everywhere. A real (all be it intensely green) stained glass window. Really neat. I may consider breaking this apart into smaller pieces (at a slightly higher price per gram) if I do not sell it intact and I have enough requests for smaller pieces (but I do kind of really hope it does not come to that).
38.4 gram super thin, transparent slice – 140mm x 75mm x 1mm - $750

Blaine Reed meteorites For sale- List 200 - After Tucson #1

Blaine Reed meteorites For sale- List 200 - After Tucson #1

Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
……………………………………………………LIST 200

February 21, 2017

Dear collectors,

Here is my first (of several) “after Tucson” lists. These are comprised of things I bought and/ or were left with me to sell at the show.


ADMIRE, Kansas: (Pallasite). Found 1881.
Now here is a slice that will make pretty much any collector say “WOW!”. This has a HUGE (180mm x 100mm) chunk/ cluster of olivine making up better than ½ of the specimen (the remainder being the usual iron/ olivine pallasite mix). I had a slice similar to this (it was cut from the same amazing specimen, which I now own the main portion of) years ago in Tucson and it sold quickly (with good reason). This piece is a thinner one than the one I sold earlier so it shows light through a good number of the crystals. I cannot guarantee stability of any piece of meteorite (even Gibeon will rust if not coated and/or mistreated) but I strongly suspect that this piece is far, far better than most. Part of this is that the end piece (and this slice) was cut over 5 years ago and was sitting around a shop in Arkansas (not exactly a dry area) with no special protection and it hardly had any rust at all (only a few small spots) and took no time at all for me to shine up (most Admire specimens would have probably exploded under such conditions). Secondly, Mike Miller did what little treatment was needed on this piece before I got it (something this thin would not have survived long enough to be polished and etched if it were unstable). I trust him with rust prone material more than anyone else. I have seen (and owned) pieces of “unstable” meteorites from Mike (like Chinga and Nantan slices) that have lasted years with no sign of rust – so he obviously has some pretty good processing secrets.
483.8 gram slice with large olivine – 240mm x 150mm x 3mm - $2500

AIQUILE, Bolivia: Ordinary chondrite (unstudied). Fell November 20, 2016.
Back in 2001, I personally found Bolivia’s first know stone meteorite – an extremely weathered 12.3g fragment of an (H5) called “Sevaruyo”. Carancas ALMOST became their first witnessed fall but managed to make it a few miles into Peru to form its impact crater. Well, here now FINALLY is Bolivia’s true first witnessed fall (of any kind). This material has not been studied yet (that work is being done in Brazil, apparently) but, to me, this is clearly an H4 or H5 breccia. I picked up a few pieces of this (one of which I am keeping) in a trade. These are both slices of a small fragment (most of the pieces recovered from this fall are broken) and have at least one edge showing fusion crust. The interior of these is bright and fresh, showing lots of metal in a white to light gray matrix. Not cheap specimens, honestly, but I don’t think that a lot of this material will be coming out (I hear rumors of making further recoveries “government property”).
1) Part slices:
a) 3.28 grams – 20mm x 17mm x 3mm - $150
b) 5.47 grams – 35mm x 17mm x 3mm - $220

CANYON DIABLO, Arizona: Coarse octahedrite (IAB).
This is another piece that came with the iron collection I bought at the show. It is a nice medium grade (not super art sculpted but certainly not an ugly lump either) that has been moderately wire brushed. It still shows some natural oxide areas among the usual gray-black brushed surfaces. I have priced this at what I was getting (wholesale) out of similar sized (but probably not as nice) pieces during the show.
190.2 gram brushed individual – 55mm x 35mm x 25mm - $160

GEBEL KAMIL, Egypt. Ni-rich ataxite (ungrouped). Found 2008
This is a nice mirror-polished (on both sides) super thin complete slice. I had sold this to an antiquities dealer some years ago (he thought it might sell to people collecting Egypt stuff among his customers). He ended up trading it back to me this Tucson for Moon/ Mars boxes. Anyway, this is a nice piece and is probably priced below what I sold it for those years ago (it was a consigned item at that time).
41.6 gram mirror-polished complete slice – 85mm x 60mm x 1mm - $145

MOLDAVITES:
I traded for a nice hand-full of these at the show. These are mostly fairly typical pieces (in size shape and texture). I try to have in inventory pieces that are complete (not chips and fragments), have nice texturing (not super deep etching like Besednice pieces but not river rounded lumps either) and are moderately priced. The few I picked out here are merely a few that kind of caught my eye as being a bit better and larger than much of the rest (though there are indeed plenty of other nice pieces remaining in the lot). These are nice complete specimens that are covered with quite intense (but not real deep) pitting/ etching. The largest piece has several deep grooves that are likely the result of ground acid etching of cooling or stretch cracks in the specimen originally after it fell.
1) Nice natural individuals:
a) 7.2 grams – 33mm x 17mm x 9mm - $40
b) 9.9 grams – 30mm x 28mm x 8mm - $55
c) 14.1 grams – 33mm x 30mm x 9mm - $80

SIKHOTE-ALIN, Russia: Coarsest octahedrite (IIAB). Fell February 12, 1947.
This is actually a pretty nice specimen despite the fact that it has been cleaned (wire-brushed) a bit harsher than I would have chosen. Sadly, it does not really appear that the piece originally had enough rust spots on it to warrant brushing in the first place. None the less, this is still covered with fusion crust (that is just a bit shinier than an unbrushed crusted piece) and is clearly a nice oriented specimen. The front is the conical (all be it fairly thin) thumb-printed shaped you expect on an oriented specimen. The back is very flat and has a clear a roll-over rim running around its outer edge. A nice piece, just cleaned a little more than I would have done.
50.3 gram oriented individual – 40mm x 25mm x 10mm - $175

Blaine Reed Meteorites For Sale- List 168 - after Tucson stuff

Blaine Reed Meteorites For Sale- List 168 - after Tucson stuff

Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
…………………………………………………………….LIST 168

February 24, 2015

Dear Collectors,

Here is the first of possibly many offerings of stuff from collections I have had and some I recently picked up. There were two main collections. One was from a collector that lived here in Colorado and sold his collection a bit over a year ago. I had taken it to a number of shows and offered it as the “cigar box collection” as it was neatly stored/displayed in two cigar boxes. As usual with a “collection lot” people looked it over and saw things they wanted, things that they didn’t and so on. The result is that no one wanted the entire lot, so I have broken it up for listing here (and future lists). Another collection came to me just days before I left for Tucson. It contained something over 50 specimens. I sold a few in Tucson but brought quite a few back as well. Anyway, these collections (when I am done cataloging and typing them up) , along with a few miscellaneous things picked up at the show, will likely make up most of my e-mail offerings for the next few months (though one, likely late April or early May will be the e-mail version of my mailed list, once I figure out just what I’ll put on that. No clue at the moment though).

ADMIRE, Kansas: (Pallasite). Found 1881.
Here is one of the Robert Haag original offering pieces of this meteorite (this specimen still has its original Robert Haag information card with it). I remember when Robert got this thing (from Glenn Huss – well, he was the in between person anyway). I also remember the “excitement” not long after. This stuff is probably the prettiest meteorite in the world, and Robert’s piece was no exception. However, this meteorite is also among the very most rust prone and, again, Robert’s piece was no exception. This is a part slice from those early days (the previous owner bought it from Robert in 1986). It still has the slice shape (it did NOT turn into an orange goo like I some pieces do) and has lots of olivine crystals visible. In this particular case, the story and original label are probably the most important parts of this specimen.
38 gram oxidized part slice – 52mm x 30mm x 6mm - $50 -SOLD

CANYON DIABLO, Arizona: Coarse octahedrite (IAB).
Here is an end piece that actually looks like a wire brushed block that had an end cut off. I etched this one myself (some years ago) and am sorry to say that it just didn’t turn out deep enough. For some reason, I just don’t get the vibrant deep etch others seem to be able to get (I end up with a dark gray mess when I have tried to use stronger acid solution or a bunch more time). I use the methods that Glenn Huss showed me close to 30 years ago. I guess I need to go back to school for etching. Anyway, nothing exciting about this piece at all. Just a decent paperweight with an etched face for a price that is hard to beat.
548.1 gram etched end piece – 48mm x 45mm x 42mm - $400

DALGARANGA, Australia: (Mesosiderite). Found 1923. Tkw = 10+ kilograms.
This is a specimen the previous owner got form me back in January of 1994. This is a complete, natural flat little piece that is clearly an internally fresh specimen (I know there were a good number of oxidized pieces of this meteorite floating around years ago). If someone where really skilled or brave, they probably cut this into two nice fresh mesosiderite end pieces (I think a wire saw would be required though). Nice and rare piece.
2.95 gram natural individual – 20mm x 17mm x 3mm - $75

GIBEON, Namibia: Fine octahedrite (IVA). Found 1836.
This is a piece I sold the previous owner a long time ago. I think it was one of the very earliest pieces I had to offer. The piece is fairly thick by today’s standards and is only etched on one side (the back side still shows saw marks). It is a nice piece none the less. It has a neat sculpted shape, the etch is nice and the natural edge (over ½ of the edge) was only lightly brushed so it has a pleasing dark brown color to it. This still has my original sticker label on the piece and comes with its original (now folded) info card.
40.1 gram etched part slice – 50mm x 27mm x 5mm - $75

INDOCHINITE, Thailand.
This is a nice but fairly typical specimen. It shows pitting on one side and a single large thumb-print on the other. Not sure where the previous owner picked this up originally as I don’t recognize the information card that comes with it.
23.3 gram individual – 37mm x 30mm x 15mm - $5

JUANCHENGE, China: (H5). Fell February 15, 1997. Tkw = about 100 kilograms.
This is a technically complete individual I sold the previous owner probably not long after this stuff started showing up. I say technically complete as it has an area (20mm x 12mm) that looks broken. Closer inspection though shows that it is clearly a late atmospheric break. There is a little roll-over effect to the crust around this “broken” areas edge that could have only formed if this piece was still falling fast enough to be forming crust. The broken area shows a little slickenside and has its high points crusted as well. This does show a little browning to the crust so it was not an immediate recovery or was one that got soaked in water to bring up the weight being sold to the buyers (simply soaking a stone meteorite in water will substantially increase its weight. I don’t recommend this as an increasing sales results tactic though).
12.4 gram complete individual – 25mm x 20mm x 12mm - $70

SIKHOTE-ALIN, Russia: Coarsest Octahedrite (IIAB). Fell February 12, 1947.
This beautiful specimen is a consigned item that get left with me at the show. I almost sold it a couple times. It does seem expensive but it is well priced considering today’s Sikhote-Alin market. This is a really nice completely thumb-printed oriented specimen (though its orientation is not super obvious). This has had some light cleaning work at some point in the past, but not much. Most of this retains its original crust color and texture. A museum quality piece (yep, a museum was, and may still be considering this piece when they saw it at the show).

3978.65 gram complete crusted individual – 120mm x 110mm x 80mm - $8500

Blaine Reed Meteorites For Sale- List 163- Novak collection pieces 1

Blaine Reed Meteorites For Sale- List 163- Novak collection pieces 1

Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
…………………………………………………………….LIST 163
November 18, 2014

Dear Collectors,

Here are some specimens from a collection I bought in Denver last September (well all but one piece – the oriented unstudied NWA is mine). These (and pieces that will fill out future lists) are all from Gordon Novak who lived in Amarillo, Texas and, unfortunately, passed away a few months ago. He bought a number of things from me over the years but the contents of this collection show he bought quite a lot elsewhere as well. I enjoyed chatting with him when he called to place an order. He was a bit of a joker/ smart _ss. I remember one time he visited the Denver show and picked out a number of items to purchase. He then asked “is there any discount for priests?” I said not really and asked “what, you are a priest?”. He said “no, but if there is a discount I’ll go find one”. Classic Gordon. Anyway, this is just an opening selection. I have a few dozen or so other things that will go out on future lists (likely into next year and maybe even beyond Tucson). I may also run a “want it out of inventory offering before the end of the year” list as well. I am in the process of doing inventory right now (grueling and tedious) and will set aside things like this as I go through it all.

ADMIRE, Kansas: (Pallasite). Found 1881.
This is a “natural” fragment that had a bit of a layer of oxide on it when I found it hiding in the corner of the collection box. It was mostly a brown blob but showed a few large obvious somewhat gemmy olivine crystals. Running it on the XRF showed it was definitely a meteorite and had the right Ni content for a pallasite. Though there was no label with it in the collection papers work, this is obviously a piece of Admire. I have since cleaned it (light wire brushing and soda-blasting) and coated it so it has a somewhat shiny metallic look to it. Neat piece and in much better shape than I would have expected for this meteorite being in a somewhat humid environment for years.
41.0 gram cleaned individual – 40mm x 27mm x 15mm - $200

CAMPO del CIELO, Argentina: Coarse octahedrite (IAB). Found 1576.
This is actually a nice, interesting piece. It is kind of a free-form bookend that stands up nicely on its own. It has natural edge around all but one (80mm long) side. One face is flat. The other side of this “slice” is wavy, free-form “cut”. Both cut surfaces have been etched and show half a dozen or so silicate (not graphite or sulfide) inclusions (one whole edge of the flat side is silicate). There are some tiny traces of rust (you have to look closely) but I did not have to do anything to this piece. It is just the way I got it. Clearly, this is from the area of the strewn field that the really silicated pieces (which are very stable) were found.
836.2 gram “slice/ bookend” – 112mm x 75mm x 15mm - $250

CHINESE TEKTITE:
These two large pieces came in a bag with an Indochinite, Thailand, Vietnam label. I can tell from their size, shape and surface features that they are really Chinese tektites. The smaller one is a dumbbell shaped piece and the larger is a flattened oval (though the ends are fatter than the middle quasi- dumbbell like).
a) 120.0 gram dumbbell shaped – 100mm x 30mm x 15mm - $30
b) 180.1 gram flattened oval – 90mm x 48mm x 20mm - $30

COCONINO SANDSTONE, Meteor Crater, Arizona.
This is a natural fragment (almost looks like it has fusion crust) of some of the rock that got blown out of the forming crater. Not rare (there are TONS of it scattered around the crater) but I have not had many pieces over the years (and they always end up selling quickly).
69.2 gram natural fragment – 50mm x 40mm x 20mm - $30 - SOLD

DIMMITT, Texas: (H3.7). Found 1942, recognized as distinct in 1950.
Here is a beautiful complete individual, one of the nicest I have seen. It has a pleasing orange brown to chocolate brown color, and obvious primary crust covering over half of the specimen (the remainder likely being secondary crust). It is a very solid piece with only a tiny hint of cracking, and that is on a corner where a plow mark starts (so being hit by a farmer’s plow likely caused this small crack). The only downer of this piece is that it obviously one of the very earliest that TCU turned loose of. I say this because it is clear that this, at one time, had both Monig labels on it: a large one with black background and a smaller one in white lettering (traces of both are still visible on this piece). When they first began releasing material to collectors (well dealers anyway) they required that we remove the labels that would identify where they came from (thankfully, this one did not suffer the indignity of having its labeling removed with a bench-grinder as I have seen done to some pieces). This was partly because, at that time (this was a long time ago folks), it wasn’t figured to be all that important and mostly because they didn’t really want to let folks know that they were willing to part with anything. The second part makes sense. Once the “cat was out of the bag” anyway they (TCU) got slammed with trade/ sales requests (and even angry demands) to the point of shear overload. I seem to recall that they pretty much shut down the release of any material to anyone for quite awhile after that. Thankfully, when they did start to allow a few things out once more, they didn’t require the labels to be removed (they clearly recognized the importance to the collectors of them then). Anyway, this is an early, cleaned label piece but being an earlier one, it is among the nicest.
509.0 gram complete individual – 100mm x 60mm x 50mm -  - SOLD

MOLDAVITE:
Here is a really nice and fairly large specimen. It is a elongate tongue- shaped piece that shows really nice, deep in spots, surface etching/ features. Not quite Besednice grade but certainly well above what I usually have (which sells well at $6/g at shows).
17.3 gram individual – 53mm x 25mm x 10mm - $125

NANTAN, China: Medium octahedrite (IAB). Found 1958.
Of the pieces of this meteorite that came in the collection, this is the one that needed the most help. Thankfully, it didn’t need a tremendous amount of work. I wire-brushed the back side and did what I could to gently clean off what rust there was on the cut face. There wasn’t all that much but the work I did (brushing with the softest wire wheel I could find) did pretty much wipe out what little (weak) etch the piece had. I didn’t want to risk trying to re-etch it. Partly as I am lousy at this, partly the effort and time involved doing this to a piece that will sell so cheap but mostly because hitting potentially unstable meteorites with acid can set off the rusting process. Anyway, the results are a nice hand specimen iron end piece that may not clearly show an etch structure but does have some interesting inclusions.
257.1 gram end piece – 70mm x 38mm x 30mm - $50

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NWA unstudied:
930 gram oriented individual
"click on image to enlarge"

NWA unstudied:
930 gram oriented individual

NWA unstudied:
930 gram oriented individual

NWA unstudied:
Here is a dark chocolate brown pointed mountain-like specimen. It is very clearly oriented and shows elongate thumb-printing down all sides of the front. It is clear, from the shape and texture of the sides, that this was a much larger piece at one point a long time ago (why oh why don’t the guys picking these things up keep the pieces of oriented stones together?). I put this out on display around the mid-point of the show in Denver and almost got it sold a couple different times (I should have set it out a bit earlier, before many collectors had already spent their money – next time).
930 gram oriented individual/ fragment – 130mm x 90mm x 60mm - $1500