Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
…………………………………………………LIST 81
December 1, 2009
Dear Collectors,
Here is a list of items that might be good for gifts for Christmas. These are mostly items that should appeal to the average person (non- meteorite collectors) and even the meteorite collector as well (though most of you will already have pieces of most of this stuff).
Contact me as soon as possible if you are interested in any of these things. I want to be sure to get them too you in time for them to be re-packed and shipped as gifts if that is what is going to happen to them. Due to a rapidly developing family emergency, I may have to leave town for a few days (multiple times over the next few weeks actually) so that may cause some delays (hence the hope that I can get as many orders lined up and packed quickly as possible). Don't be afraid to contact me later and ask about any of these things (or things on earlier lists for that manner) though. I realize that it sometimes takes time to make purchase decisions (particularly for gifts). I will do my best to be sure that you get it in time regardless of the delays on your or my part.
CAMPO del CIELO, Argentina: Coarse octahedrite (IAB).
These are neat little pendants that have been made from the polished angular fragments of this meteorite that have had a small loop soldered to the top so they can easily be hung on a chain (neck or key). These are hugely popular at my shows and I often sell out what I bring (I did in Socorro). Unfortunately, I do not have the chains for these. Years ago I used to try and carry various chains for such things. It seemed that no matter how many different ones I had, I never had the right style (gold vs. silver etc. proper thickness or length). So I made the (possibly poor) decision to let the customers find what suits them best (these things can be easily found at Wal-Mart, Michael's or such for surprisingly cheap). Sizes (weights and dimensions) are approximate, as I have many pieces (except for the extra large) in each size range to pick from for you.
A) Small: about 3 grams each - 12mm x 10mm x 7mm - $3
B) Medium: about 8 grams - 19mm x 13mm x 9mm - $8
C) Large: about 13 grams each - 22mm x 18mm x 9mm - $13
D) Extra large: about 25 grams each - 20mm x 20mm x 19mm - $25 - good key-chain size.
E) Small gold plated piece: 1.8 grams - 12mm x 9mm x 5mm. This thing really looks like a nice little gold nugget (aesy to tell it is not with a magnet) - $5
F) Extra special piece: This is a neat little (8.6 grams - 17mm x 17mm x 6mm) piece that is a "puzzle piece" it has two interlocked pieces that are held together naturally. This stuff is broken apart along its natural Widmanstatten structure. This piece managed to partially separate along one band so there are now two halves that, though they wiggle, they are still firmly connected to each other. Really cool and the only piece like it I have ever found in this material - $50
SIKHOTE-ALIN: Russia. Coarsest octahedrite (IIAB). Fell Feb. 12, 1947.
Here are two different pendant options. One is basic and simple (bet yet has its own "chain" and looks quite nice) and the other quite elegant (professionally wire-rapped in sterling silver, but no chain).
a) Nice dark (not wire-brushed too an extreme) flat shrapnel piece (about 12 grams - 25mm x 25mm x 5mm) that has had a hole drilled in it (that must have taken some work), a loop put through that and hung on a dark leather-looking (though it is a synthetic material I am sure) "chain". Actually quite nice! I need to remember where I got this and make it a regular inventory item - $25
b) Nice quasi- heart shaped shrapnel piece (around 16 grams - 22mm x 26mm x 8mm) that has been wire wrapped in sterling silver. The meteorite has been cleaned such that parts (the edges) are still dark but the center is a medium gray metallic. Very nice piece! - $50
NWA (482): Lunar dust pendant.
These (all 2 of them I have left) are really nice. They are small (about 15mm long, 10mm diameter) teardrop glass vials that have a good amount of dust saved from the cutting of the famous NWA (482) lunar meteorite inside. These have been fully sealed (so no dust will escape) and capped with a 14k gold bell cap. They are ready to hang on any chain. - $100
INDOCHINITE PENDANT:
These are pendants made from a small (about 5g about 2 or 3cm across) tektite individuals (mostly flat or elongate) from Thailand. They have had a small loop attached at the top. These have been cleaned so they have a nice shiny black color (except some are thin enough to show the dark olive-green real color of the glass when a bit of light passes through them) and have the nice classic pitted surface features. Nice little jewelry pieces, but not suggested for use banging around on a key chain (the keys will likely ultimately win the battle) - $4 each.
CARVED MOLDAVITE PENDANTS:
I got a few of these neat carved moldavites a few years ago. They are nice individual moldavite specimens that have been carefully carved such that they have a beautiful lady's face in the center with the surrounding natural moldavite surface features looking like her hair. These are very nicely done and no two are alike. I had been selling these simply as "specimens". I recently decided to get a couple professionally wire-wrapped for pendant use. The results = WOW. I went ahead and got them all wrapped. I got one done in silver and the rest done in gold (the gold seems to work a bit better visually with the green of the moldavite).
a) Carving wire wrapped in sterling sliver. Specimen is roughly 16mm x 15mm x 10mm and overall pendant is 27mm x 22mm x 12mm - $100
b) Carving wrapped in 14k gold filled wire. Moldavite is roughly 20mm x 18mm x 8mm and overall pendant is 30mm x 18mm x 10mm - $100
MOON/ MARS BOXES:
These are neat little 55mm x 35mm plastic boxes that have a picture from either the Moon or Mars (depending, obviously, on what type rock it contains) with a 1cm round window cut out to one side that has a small (roughly 1mm x 2mm or so) piece of moon or mars rock in the center. These are neat little items and a huge hit at my retail shows and are a fantastic gift for kids or anybody interested in rocks, astronomy, meteorites or anything out of the ordinary..
a) Moon box - $25
b) Mars box - $25
c) One of each - $40
METEORITE POCKET WATCH:
I think this is the thing that got me started into pocket watches (many of you may not know that I have taught myself how to fix old watches and have built up quite a collection of antique pocket watches. I even have some for sale; ranging from $20 for a 40 or 50 year old "dollar watch" to a $1500 for a 270 year old specimen and everything in between. So, let me if you have a watch collector or antique collector on your list and I will see if I can come up with something for you). This is a "skeleton" watch that has front and back crystals so you can see through it (and the cut out movement plates) to see all of the gears and such doing their thing. What is special about this though is its case. It is completely (including the winding crown, bow, stem and all) machined out of a piece of Gibeon meteorite! It was then etched and gold plated. This has a plate inside labeled "S. Racine" (the maker) 001/100. This was the first one of what was to be a run of 100 meteorite watches. I don't think more than a handful were ever made (and they were all different in case style and decoration, so no two are alike as far as I am aware). A truly special and unique item - $3500
METEORITE COINS:
These are roughly 2" (50mm) diameter medallions that have a small piece (around 5mm size in the case of the Campo and NWA (869) coins, a small fragment or pinch of fragments and dust in the case of the moon or mars coins). Each is individually serial numbered as part of a limited (nearly sold out in some cases) run. The Campo and NWA (869) coins each come with a serial numbered "certificate of authenticity" as well (I
Did not get these for the moon/mars ones though).
a) Campo del Cielo or NWA (869 ) coins - $30 each
b) Moon or Mars coins - $70 each
Tuesday, 1 December 2009
Tuesday, 24 November 2009
Blaine Reed Meteorites- List #80 New Lunar
Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
…………………………………………………LIST 80
November 24, 2009
Dear Collectors,
I am back form my trips and, hopefully, should be home for awhile as I need to start doing inventory work soon. This is a required but tedious job that takes a good week or so to accomplish (I have a lot of stuff stored in a lot of different places and it all has to be weighed and cataloged). I should find a bunch of things to offer on the next couple lists from this work though, so look forward to those over the next few weeks.
This is a single, but special item offering. It should have gone out last Tuesday, but I was not home yet from the Socorro show as I spent an extra day getting home to let the snow get removed from the 11,000 foot high passes I have to cross. I got this special material very recently from Matt and I am thrilled to have it (I am purchasing a piece for my collection). It is the cheapest Lunar material I have ever offered (at least in nice slices). I don't have a real large amount of this, a couple tens of grams is all, so let me know as soon as possible if you want me to set aside a piece for you (I realize that with the holidays coming up, some of you may need extra time to pay for any pieces you might like for yourself, so PLEASE don't be afraid to ask).
NWA (4734): Lunar basalt. Found 2001. Tkw = 1372 grams.
A number of crusted fragments of this Moon rock have been found over the past couple years, but little has been available to collectors until quite recently. I had known about this stuff (and had been waiting for a few grams I was supposed to be receiving through a trade deal I had arranged a couple years ago) but had only seen a couple photos and descriptions. These descriptions generally called this stuff "Monzo-gabbro" . It is not. It is actually a basalt. A gabbro is a sub-surface cooled igneous rock where as basalt is extruded onto and cools on the surface. This stuff has a crystal texture that shows that it is a surface cooled (extruded volcanic rock) and not a slower cooled sub-surface (intrusive) rock. Its overall chemistry also shows that this cannot be properly called a gabbro either. The overall appearance of this material is surprisingly similar to Zagami - a Mars surface cooled basalt rock. About the only differences are that this has a bit more tan coloration to it and generally shows more fine black shock lines on the cut faces. Some of these pieces show some black crust along their edges (mostly the larger ones, unfortunately) , I will make not of those below.
1) Slices:
a) .04 grams - 4mm x 2.5mm x 1.5mm - $38
b) .10 grams - 9mm x 3mm x 2mm - $95
c) .21 grams - 10mm x 5mm x 2mm - $200
d) .32 grams - 10mm x 7mm x 2mm - $300
e) .63 grams - 18mm x 7mm x 2mm - $595
f) 1.32 grams - 20mm x 14mm x 2mm - $1235 - about 12mm along edge crusted.
g) 2.73 grams - 32mm x 17mm x 2mm - $2500 - about 30% of edge crusted.
h) 5.86 grams - 37mm x 30mm x 2mm - $5300 - about 40% of edge crusted.
2) Cut fragments:
a) 1.10 grams - 12mm x 9mm x 4mm - $1030
b) 1.67 grams - 30mm x 8mm x 3mm - $1560
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
…………………………………………………LIST 80
November 24, 2009
Dear Collectors,
I am back form my trips and, hopefully, should be home for awhile as I need to start doing inventory work soon. This is a required but tedious job that takes a good week or so to accomplish (I have a lot of stuff stored in a lot of different places and it all has to be weighed and cataloged). I should find a bunch of things to offer on the next couple lists from this work though, so look forward to those over the next few weeks.
This is a single, but special item offering. It should have gone out last Tuesday, but I was not home yet from the Socorro show as I spent an extra day getting home to let the snow get removed from the 11,000 foot high passes I have to cross. I got this special material very recently from Matt and I am thrilled to have it (I am purchasing a piece for my collection). It is the cheapest Lunar material I have ever offered (at least in nice slices). I don't have a real large amount of this, a couple tens of grams is all, so let me know as soon as possible if you want me to set aside a piece for you (I realize that with the holidays coming up, some of you may need extra time to pay for any pieces you might like for yourself, so PLEASE don't be afraid to ask).
NWA (4734): Lunar basalt. Found 2001. Tkw = 1372 grams.
A number of crusted fragments of this Moon rock have been found over the past couple years, but little has been available to collectors until quite recently. I had known about this stuff (and had been waiting for a few grams I was supposed to be receiving through a trade deal I had arranged a couple years ago) but had only seen a couple photos and descriptions. These descriptions generally called this stuff "Monzo-gabbro" . It is not. It is actually a basalt. A gabbro is a sub-surface cooled igneous rock where as basalt is extruded onto and cools on the surface. This stuff has a crystal texture that shows that it is a surface cooled (extruded volcanic rock) and not a slower cooled sub-surface (intrusive) rock. Its overall chemistry also shows that this cannot be properly called a gabbro either. The overall appearance of this material is surprisingly similar to Zagami - a Mars surface cooled basalt rock. About the only differences are that this has a bit more tan coloration to it and generally shows more fine black shock lines on the cut faces. Some of these pieces show some black crust along their edges (mostly the larger ones, unfortunately) , I will make not of those below.
1) Slices:
a) .04 grams - 4mm x 2.5mm x 1.5mm - $38
b) .10 grams - 9mm x 3mm x 2mm - $95
c) .21 grams - 10mm x 5mm x 2mm - $200
d) .32 grams - 10mm x 7mm x 2mm - $300
e) .63 grams - 18mm x 7mm x 2mm - $595
f) 1.32 grams - 20mm x 14mm x 2mm - $1235 - about 12mm along edge crusted.
g) 2.73 grams - 32mm x 17mm x 2mm - $2500 - about 30% of edge crusted.
h) 5.86 grams - 37mm x 30mm x 2mm - $5300 - about 40% of edge crusted.
2) Cut fragments:
a) 1.10 grams - 12mm x 9mm x 4mm - $1030
b) 1.67 grams - 30mm x 8mm x 3mm - $1560
Tuesday, 3 November 2009
Blaine Reed Meteorites LIST #79- 3NOV09
Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
…………………………………………………LIST 79
November 3, 2009
Dear Collectors,
I am sorry that this is going out a bit late today. I have managed to get myself into a project that is turning out to be a bit more involved and difficult than what it originally appeared. I picked up a couple used solar hot-air panels a month or so ago and decided (with a good dose of really cold weather a week or so ago) it was time to install them. This seemed like a simple thing on paper, but the actual job has been very time consuming (I have been working on it off and on for close to a week now) and quite expensive for "free" heat. I do finally have the things mounted on the wall and pipes run so heat is arriving. Unfortunately, it is arriving in such huge quantities that I cannot seem to get a fan system to keep up. I finally have given up for the day. I had to hang sheets over the panels (thankfully there is no wind today) as the fans I was using are verging on melting! (the air was coming out of the vent at a bit over 160F) . I will to stop and reconsider how to deal with this later. So, now, finally is a list!
I do have some travels coming up:
I will likely be gone this Friday until Monday (November 6th through the 8th)..
I also have a show next week. This will be in Socorro, New Mexico (about an hours drive south of Albuquerque on I-25) for the Mineral Symposium that I have been attending for about 25 years now. I will set up a room of stuff, though not quite as filled as Denver or Tucson. I will be at the Comfort Inn on the very north end of town (on the west side of the interstate). I am supposed to be in room 119, but things often get goofed up in this show (very few ever get the same room year after year), so I cannot be absolutely certain of this. I will be open at about 5pm Friday November 13th (until around midnight) and again on Saturday the 14th from around 6pm until midnight. Let me know if any of you might make it and what you might like me to bring and I'll be sure to load it up to go with. For this event, I will likely be gone from home from Nov 12th until possibly November 19th (Linda wants to goof off a bit and visit friends in Durango on the way home, if she ends up coming along)
KORRA KORRABES, Namibia: (H3). Found August 2000, tkw = 140kg.
This piece is a much fresher than usual for this meteorite. It has a generally lighter color than most specimens (light grays and browns where as most Korra is usually dark brown). This allows the numerous medium gray clasts mixed in the chondrule-rich matrix to be readily visible.
47.9 gram cut fragment - 50mm x 40mm x 14mm - $80
NWA (5421): (LL3.7). Found 2008, Tkw = 2200grams.
When people see this one they usually simply say "wow". This (generally) has really large chondrules of many colors (resembling the famous and really expensive Ragland meteorite but just much larger scale). This stuff has pretty much completely sold itself. I never really got the chance to offer it publicly. I have only these 3 pieces left (and only because I had them set aside). The small piece is a bit small to really get an appretiation for the texture of this stuff, but is a good size for thin-sectioning (the main reason this one was put back). The large slice I set back because it was a large piece and it has an interesting zone of dark and fine-chondruled material blotched through the center. The end piece shows some thumb-prints and actually still shows a little bit of black crust. Its internal texture is really mostly the finer dark material but it does have one end showing the "anomalously large" chondrules (including one that is nearly 1cm across) that I more associate with this meteorite.
a) 2.5 gram slice - 25mm x 12mm x 2.5mm - $30
b) 92.6 gram complete slice - 115mm x 80mm x 4mm - $1000
c) 99.6 gram end piece - 75mm x 42mm x 25mm - $800
NWA (5488): (Lodranite), brecciated. Found 2008. Tkw = 110grams +.
Here are a few more pieces of this rare and interesting stuff. I quickly sold out of all I had when I first offered it. I managed to beg for a few more pieces so I would have some for people waiting for pieces as well as some for my upcoming show and such. This is fairly dark material, but it does show a great breccia texture with angular to sub-rounded fragments of all sizes.
a) .4 gram slice - 13mm x 7mm x 2mm - $32
b) 1.4 gram slice - 16mm x 15mm x 2mm - $112
c) 2.0 gram slice - 23mm x 20mm x 2mm - $160
d) 4.0 gram slice - 37mm x 19mm x 2mm - $300
e) 6.8 gram slice - 40mm x 27mm x 2mm - $500
f) 15.7 gram END PIECE - 40mm x 30mm x 6mm - $900 - shows really nice breccia texture including one large 12mm x 8mm clast.
.
SULAGIRI, India: (LL6). Fell September 12, 2008. Tkw = 110kg.
This is a large cut fragment (with 2 patches of crust) of a large piece (the "Attakuruki" mass) that landed in a road next to a cow pen. This piece even has a small (1cm or so) blotch of cow dung to lend a bit authenticity to its fall history. This has a 80mm x 60mm cut face, 2 crust patches (one about 65mm x 50mm that shows scratches, coloration from contact with the dirt and rocks as it made its crater in the road and the other a dark, clean 70mm x 30mm triangular shaped patch). This comes with a card telling a bit of its history that also has a photo of the impact pit it came from in the road with a couple cows lying beside the road with people gathered around the hole. This is NOT cheap stuff. Most others I know that have gotten pieces of this fall paid close to $18/g (and sometimes more). This is less than half of that (but the weight does make the raw number quite large none the less).
994.8 gram cut fragment with dung and crust - 80mm x 60mm x 80mm - $8000
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
…………………………………………………LIST 79
November 3, 2009
Dear Collectors,
I am sorry that this is going out a bit late today. I have managed to get myself into a project that is turning out to be a bit more involved and difficult than what it originally appeared. I picked up a couple used solar hot-air panels a month or so ago and decided (with a good dose of really cold weather a week or so ago) it was time to install them. This seemed like a simple thing on paper, but the actual job has been very time consuming (I have been working on it off and on for close to a week now) and quite expensive for "free" heat. I do finally have the things mounted on the wall and pipes run so heat is arriving. Unfortunately, it is arriving in such huge quantities that I cannot seem to get a fan system to keep up. I finally have given up for the day. I had to hang sheets over the panels (thankfully there is no wind today) as the fans I was using are verging on melting! (the air was coming out of the vent at a bit over 160F) . I will to stop and reconsider how to deal with this later. So, now, finally is a list!
I do have some travels coming up:
I will likely be gone this Friday until Monday (November 6th through the 8th)..
I also have a show next week. This will be in Socorro, New Mexico (about an hours drive south of Albuquerque on I-25) for the Mineral Symposium that I have been attending for about 25 years now. I will set up a room of stuff, though not quite as filled as Denver or Tucson. I will be at the Comfort Inn on the very north end of town (on the west side of the interstate). I am supposed to be in room 119, but things often get goofed up in this show (very few ever get the same room year after year), so I cannot be absolutely certain of this. I will be open at about 5pm Friday November 13th (until around midnight) and again on Saturday the 14th from around 6pm until midnight. Let me know if any of you might make it and what you might like me to bring and I'll be sure to load it up to go with. For this event, I will likely be gone from home from Nov 12th until possibly November 19th (Linda wants to goof off a bit and visit friends in Durango on the way home, if she ends up coming along)
KORRA KORRABES, Namibia: (H3). Found August 2000, tkw = 140kg.
This piece is a much fresher than usual for this meteorite. It has a generally lighter color than most specimens (light grays and browns where as most Korra is usually dark brown). This allows the numerous medium gray clasts mixed in the chondrule-rich matrix to be readily visible.
47.9 gram cut fragment - 50mm x 40mm x 14mm - $80
NWA (5421): (LL3.7). Found 2008, Tkw = 2200grams.
When people see this one they usually simply say "wow". This (generally) has really large chondrules of many colors (resembling the famous and really expensive Ragland meteorite but just much larger scale). This stuff has pretty much completely sold itself. I never really got the chance to offer it publicly. I have only these 3 pieces left (and only because I had them set aside). The small piece is a bit small to really get an appretiation for the texture of this stuff, but is a good size for thin-sectioning (the main reason this one was put back). The large slice I set back because it was a large piece and it has an interesting zone of dark and fine-chondruled material blotched through the center. The end piece shows some thumb-prints and actually still shows a little bit of black crust. Its internal texture is really mostly the finer dark material but it does have one end showing the "anomalously large" chondrules (including one that is nearly 1cm across) that I more associate with this meteorite.
a) 2.5 gram slice - 25mm x 12mm x 2.5mm - $30
b) 92.6 gram complete slice - 115mm x 80mm x 4mm - $1000
c) 99.6 gram end piece - 75mm x 42mm x 25mm - $800
NWA (5488): (Lodranite), brecciated. Found 2008. Tkw = 110grams +.
Here are a few more pieces of this rare and interesting stuff. I quickly sold out of all I had when I first offered it. I managed to beg for a few more pieces so I would have some for people waiting for pieces as well as some for my upcoming show and such. This is fairly dark material, but it does show a great breccia texture with angular to sub-rounded fragments of all sizes.
a) .4 gram slice - 13mm x 7mm x 2mm - $32
b) 1.4 gram slice - 16mm x 15mm x 2mm - $112
c) 2.0 gram slice - 23mm x 20mm x 2mm - $160
d) 4.0 gram slice - 37mm x 19mm x 2mm - $300
e) 6.8 gram slice - 40mm x 27mm x 2mm - $500
f) 15.7 gram END PIECE - 40mm x 30mm x 6mm - $900 - shows really nice breccia texture including one large 12mm x 8mm clast.
.
SULAGIRI, India: (LL6). Fell September 12, 2008. Tkw = 110kg.
This is a large cut fragment (with 2 patches of crust) of a large piece (the "Attakuruki" mass) that landed in a road next to a cow pen. This piece even has a small (1cm or so) blotch of cow dung to lend a bit authenticity to its fall history. This has a 80mm x 60mm cut face, 2 crust patches (one about 65mm x 50mm that shows scratches, coloration from contact with the dirt and rocks as it made its crater in the road and the other a dark, clean 70mm x 30mm triangular shaped patch). This comes with a card telling a bit of its history that also has a photo of the impact pit it came from in the road with a couple cows lying beside the road with people gathered around the hole. This is NOT cheap stuff. Most others I know that have gotten pieces of this fall paid close to $18/g (and sometimes more). This is less than half of that (but the weight does make the raw number quite large none the less).
994.8 gram cut fragment with dung and crust - 80mm x 60mm x 80mm - $8000
Saturday, 31 October 2009
Blaine Reed Meteorites List 78 NOV09
Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax: (970) 874 -1487
………………………………………………………..LIST 78
November 2009
Dear Collectors,
Here is the e-mail (now blog post) version of my new mailed list that was recently sent out by mail to my customers. If you see anything of interest or have questions, please contact me. Phone is usually best (for those in the US anyway) for me (I am a lousy typist and we can cover more in just a couple minutes than hours of typing e-mails back and forth). However, I will be in and out of the house the next couple days working on a project (attempting to install a couple solar heating panels I recently picked up). So leave a message and I will call you back when I get back in. E-mail (brmeteorites@yahoo.com) is obviously best for overseas people, but I can be a bit lax in checking it from time to time (kind of a pain turning on the computer, booting up, signing in and all of that. Close to half an hour gone before I even get "down to business" so I sometimes end up going quite awhile without checking if things are otherwise busy).
CAMPO DEL CIELO, Argentina: Coarse octahedrite (IAB). Found 1576.
Here are some nice complete slices of highly silicated material. These are loaded with various silicate minerals, graphite and troilite. They look every bit as good as the famous Zagora, Udei Station or Landes meteorites but at a fraction of the price. I just finished polishing these up but did not etch them. First, most pieces have very little metal field areas that would show much of an etch anyway. Secondly, I had received these unpolished and un-coated. They showed no rust (except a thin brown staining on a couple pieces). Remembering a warning I got many years ago from Glenn Huss that the acid when etching potential problem irons will often set off a serious rusting reaction, I decided to just leave these beautiful slices alone as they were quite stable in their current state.
1)Slices of a highly silicated individual (all are complete but the 16.1g):
a) 16.1 grams - 45mm x 35mm x 3mm - $30.00
b) 24.3 grams - 47mm x 33mm x 4mm - $45.00
c) 39.1 grams - 63mm x 36mm x 4mm - $70.00
d) 74.0 grams - 80mm x 54mm x 4mm - $130.00 - has several olivine or pyroxene crystals.
NOKTAT ADDAGMAR, Mauritania: (LL5). Found October or November 2006, Tkw = about 1kg.
To stones (581grams and 188grams) were originally found (and a good number of tiny stones later) by a mineral collector near the cravansary of Noktat Addagmar after local reports of "stones that recently fell from the sky". These are very fresh (weathering grade of W0), but scientific studies of short-lived radionuclides indicate that they fell at least several decades earlier. These are all small individuals as found. They all have nice black crust (though there is some wind-polish shine to some portions) and most show contraction cracks and small chipped areas that reveal the fresh light-colored interior. Neat little pieces of a moderately rare type stone.
1) Individuals as found:
a) .25 grams - 9mm x 7mm x 6mm - $4.00
b) 1.44 grams - 12mm x 9mm x 8mm - $17.00
c) 2.45 grams - 12mm x 12mm x 10mm - $28.00
NWA (2136): Ordinary chondrite. (L3.5). Found before February 2004, Tkw = 1045 grams.
I can't believe I have had this hidden in storage for over 5 years now! But then I have been digging in older material more and more lately as there seems to be very little new available the past year or so. This is interesting and rare material (there are only around 5 L3.5 meteorites reported). This shows lots of gray chondrules of many sizes in an almost orange matrix. It is also quite porous. I had assumed that this was from weathering, but probably not as there are still plenty of fresh metal grains scattered throughout the specimen. I suspect that this just has not seen much shock in its life. At least not enough to compact and consolidate the material to a great degree.
1) Slices:
a) 3.4 grams - 36mm x 15mm x 2mm - $20.00
b) 6.3 grams - 33mm x 33mm x 3mm - $38.00
c) 13.0 grams - 60mm x 30mm x 2mm - $75.00
d) 23.5 grams - 60mm x 43mm x 3mm - $130.00
e) 37.9 grams - 75mm x 48mm x 4mm - $200.00
VIEDMA, Argentina: (L6). Found Feb 12, 2000, possibly fell Nov 5, 1998. Tkw = 6.9 kilograms.
A single stone was found by a gold prospector on Balneario el Condor Beach. There were local newspaper reports of a fireball traveling from west to east that detonated over Viedma on November 5, 1998. The find location of this stone was very close to the fall location suggested in the newspaper. This is indeed quite fresh material. It has a very light gray interior that shows only minor light brown oxide spotting. The crust is dark gray/black with only minor brown spotting as well. I have no trouble believing that this meteorite is indeed the one that fell in November of 1998. Unfortunately, I have very little of this material.
1) Slices:
a) 5.0 grams - 30mm x 14mm x 4mm - $30.00
b) 9.7 grams - 45mm x 18mm x 4mm - $58.00
c) 26.2 grams - 50mm x 32mm x 5mm - $150.00 - one crusted edge.
d) 63.1 grams - 95mm x 64mm x 3mm - $350.00 - 2/3 edge crusted.
e) 159.3 grams - 130mm x 90mm x 5mm - $800.00 - 90+% edge crusted.
NWA (2822): Rumurutiite. (R4), polymict breccia. Found before February 2005. Tkw = 1675 grams.
This is another one of my longer term stored items. I personally like R - chondrites and think they are a bit under appreciated in general. But then, I remember the early days of their discovery (the Carlisle Lakes, Australia material) and the excitement it generated in the research community. I had not realized how long it has been since I have offered an R-chondrite on one of my mailed lists (I have had the odd piece or two float through my e-mail offerings, but not many). Digging through my old records, it seems that the last R I listed was in October of 2004 - before this one was even found! This is nice material. It has a nice mottled medium orange to brown matrix that contains lots of lighter colored chondrules and the occasional odd dark clast. This is indeed a breccia containing pieces of rocks of different compositions, hence the "polymict" breccia classification.
1) Slices:
a) 3.0 grams - 18mm x 16mm x 3mm - $36.00
b) 6.1 grams - 33mm x 25mm x 3mm - $73.00
c) 16.7 grams - 58mm x 32mm x 3mm - $200.00 - complete slice
d) 25.6 grams - 60mm x 43mm x 3mm - $300.00 - complete slice
e) 33.5 grams - 68mm x 54mm x 3mm - $385.00
NWA (5745): Achondrite (Ureilite). Found before January 2006. Tkw = 1.5kg (9kg including pairings).
Here are some slices from some material that Mike Martinez and I picked up at the Tucson Show in 2006. Mike got the thrill of cutting this for me (NOT easy, this one contains plenty of blade busting diamonds). We had bought several fragments from a large piece that weighed about 9kg that was broken apart at the show. The largest piece (6kg and assigned NWA (2218)) went to Canada with David Gregory and is going to be donated to the Royal Ontario Museum (no idea where the other pieces went). Research work showed this material to be mineralogically unusual. It has a lower pyroxene content than most ureilites and is composed mostly of olivine with graphite and micro-diamonds.
1) Slices:
a) .93 grams - 13mm x 12mm x 2mm - $24.00
b) 1.8 grams - 22mm x 15mm x 2mm - $45.00
c) 4.5 grams - 27mm x 14mm x 4mm - $110.00
d) 6.5 grams - 35mm x 25mm x 3mm - $150.00
e) 8.3 grams - 35mm x 21mm x 4mm - $170.00
f) 24.3 grams - 65mm x 36mm x 4mm - $485.00
g) 37.2 grams - 58mm x 57mm x 4mm - $700.00
2) End pieces:
a) 10.7 grams - 33mm x 19mm x 8mm - $210.00
b) 71.3 grams - 60mm x 40mm x 20mm - $1250.00 - stands up nicely on its own.
MOLDAVITE: Tekitite. Beautiful green colored.
Here are some beautiful LARGE pieces. I have not had pieces this large for a long time (my bigger pieces seem to sell fastest, a different problem from other dealers and items). I got these in trade in Tucson this February and was thrilled to get them offered to me. They are all nice complete specimens (the largest has a chip on the underside, and others may have some tiny chipping that isn't noticeable without very careful inspection) that have very nice shapes and surface sculpting.
1) Complete specimens as found:
a) 7.9 grams - 22mm x 20mm x 12mm - $40.00
b) 11.2 grams - 38mm x 20mm x 9mm - $56.00
c) 14.9 grams - 42mm x 20mm x 12mm - $75.00
d) 18.3 grams - 40mm x 34mm x 12mm - $92.00
e) 21.3 grams - 55mm x 32mm x 9mm - $125.00
f) 32.6 grams - 60mm x 40mm x 8mm - $225.00
Please include postage; a couple dollars on small U.S. orders and about $2 per pound on larger items for 1st class (insurance is extra). On small overseas orders, $3 to $5 is generally plenty, and about $1 per ounce (28 grams) on larger items for air-mail. Registration is also recommended on overseas shipments - an extra $10.00.
If you are sending a fax, simply begin transmitting when my line is answered. My new machine will automatically start and receive just as the manual said.
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax: (970) 874 -1487
………………………………………………………..LIST 78
November 2009
Dear Collectors,
Here is the e-mail (now blog post) version of my new mailed list that was recently sent out by mail to my customers. If you see anything of interest or have questions, please contact me. Phone is usually best (for those in the US anyway) for me (I am a lousy typist and we can cover more in just a couple minutes than hours of typing e-mails back and forth). However, I will be in and out of the house the next couple days working on a project (attempting to install a couple solar heating panels I recently picked up). So leave a message and I will call you back when I get back in. E-mail (brmeteorites@yahoo.com) is obviously best for overseas people, but I can be a bit lax in checking it from time to time (kind of a pain turning on the computer, booting up, signing in and all of that. Close to half an hour gone before I even get "down to business" so I sometimes end up going quite awhile without checking if things are otherwise busy).
CAMPO DEL CIELO, Argentina: Coarse octahedrite (IAB). Found 1576.
Here are some nice complete slices of highly silicated material. These are loaded with various silicate minerals, graphite and troilite. They look every bit as good as the famous Zagora, Udei Station or Landes meteorites but at a fraction of the price. I just finished polishing these up but did not etch them. First, most pieces have very little metal field areas that would show much of an etch anyway. Secondly, I had received these unpolished and un-coated. They showed no rust (except a thin brown staining on a couple pieces). Remembering a warning I got many years ago from Glenn Huss that the acid when etching potential problem irons will often set off a serious rusting reaction, I decided to just leave these beautiful slices alone as they were quite stable in their current state.
1)Slices of a highly silicated individual (all are complete but the 16.1g):
a) 16.1 grams - 45mm x 35mm x 3mm - $30.00
b) 24.3 grams - 47mm x 33mm x 4mm - $45.00
c) 39.1 grams - 63mm x 36mm x 4mm - $70.00
d) 74.0 grams - 80mm x 54mm x 4mm - $130.00 - has several olivine or pyroxene crystals.
NOKTAT ADDAGMAR, Mauritania: (LL5). Found October or November 2006, Tkw = about 1kg.
To stones (581grams and 188grams) were originally found (and a good number of tiny stones later) by a mineral collector near the cravansary of Noktat Addagmar after local reports of "stones that recently fell from the sky". These are very fresh (weathering grade of W0), but scientific studies of short-lived radionuclides indicate that they fell at least several decades earlier. These are all small individuals as found. They all have nice black crust (though there is some wind-polish shine to some portions) and most show contraction cracks and small chipped areas that reveal the fresh light-colored interior. Neat little pieces of a moderately rare type stone.
1) Individuals as found:
a) .25 grams - 9mm x 7mm x 6mm - $4.00
b) 1.44 grams - 12mm x 9mm x 8mm - $17.00
c) 2.45 grams - 12mm x 12mm x 10mm - $28.00
NWA (2136): Ordinary chondrite. (L3.5). Found before February 2004, Tkw = 1045 grams.
I can't believe I have had this hidden in storage for over 5 years now! But then I have been digging in older material more and more lately as there seems to be very little new available the past year or so. This is interesting and rare material (there are only around 5 L3.5 meteorites reported). This shows lots of gray chondrules of many sizes in an almost orange matrix. It is also quite porous. I had assumed that this was from weathering, but probably not as there are still plenty of fresh metal grains scattered throughout the specimen. I suspect that this just has not seen much shock in its life. At least not enough to compact and consolidate the material to a great degree.
1) Slices:
a) 3.4 grams - 36mm x 15mm x 2mm - $20.00
b) 6.3 grams - 33mm x 33mm x 3mm - $38.00
c) 13.0 grams - 60mm x 30mm x 2mm - $75.00
d) 23.5 grams - 60mm x 43mm x 3mm - $130.00
e) 37.9 grams - 75mm x 48mm x 4mm - $200.00
VIEDMA, Argentina: (L6). Found Feb 12, 2000, possibly fell Nov 5, 1998. Tkw = 6.9 kilograms.
A single stone was found by a gold prospector on Balneario el Condor Beach. There were local newspaper reports of a fireball traveling from west to east that detonated over Viedma on November 5, 1998. The find location of this stone was very close to the fall location suggested in the newspaper. This is indeed quite fresh material. It has a very light gray interior that shows only minor light brown oxide spotting. The crust is dark gray/black with only minor brown spotting as well. I have no trouble believing that this meteorite is indeed the one that fell in November of 1998. Unfortunately, I have very little of this material.
1) Slices:
a) 5.0 grams - 30mm x 14mm x 4mm - $30.00
b) 9.7 grams - 45mm x 18mm x 4mm - $58.00
c) 26.2 grams - 50mm x 32mm x 5mm - $150.00 - one crusted edge.
d) 63.1 grams - 95mm x 64mm x 3mm - $350.00 - 2/3 edge crusted.
e) 159.3 grams - 130mm x 90mm x 5mm - $800.00 - 90+% edge crusted.
NWA (2822): Rumurutiite. (R4), polymict breccia. Found before February 2005. Tkw = 1675 grams.
This is another one of my longer term stored items. I personally like R - chondrites and think they are a bit under appreciated in general. But then, I remember the early days of their discovery (the Carlisle Lakes, Australia material) and the excitement it generated in the research community. I had not realized how long it has been since I have offered an R-chondrite on one of my mailed lists (I have had the odd piece or two float through my e-mail offerings, but not many). Digging through my old records, it seems that the last R I listed was in October of 2004 - before this one was even found! This is nice material. It has a nice mottled medium orange to brown matrix that contains lots of lighter colored chondrules and the occasional odd dark clast. This is indeed a breccia containing pieces of rocks of different compositions, hence the "polymict" breccia classification.
1) Slices:
a) 3.0 grams - 18mm x 16mm x 3mm - $36.00
b) 6.1 grams - 33mm x 25mm x 3mm - $73.00
c) 16.7 grams - 58mm x 32mm x 3mm - $200.00 - complete slice
d) 25.6 grams - 60mm x 43mm x 3mm - $300.00 - complete slice
e) 33.5 grams - 68mm x 54mm x 3mm - $385.00
NWA (5745): Achondrite (Ureilite). Found before January 2006. Tkw = 1.5kg (9kg including pairings).
Here are some slices from some material that Mike Martinez and I picked up at the Tucson Show in 2006. Mike got the thrill of cutting this for me (NOT easy, this one contains plenty of blade busting diamonds). We had bought several fragments from a large piece that weighed about 9kg that was broken apart at the show. The largest piece (6kg and assigned NWA (2218)) went to Canada with David Gregory and is going to be donated to the Royal Ontario Museum (no idea where the other pieces went). Research work showed this material to be mineralogically unusual. It has a lower pyroxene content than most ureilites and is composed mostly of olivine with graphite and micro-diamonds.
1) Slices:
a) .93 grams - 13mm x 12mm x 2mm - $24.00
b) 1.8 grams - 22mm x 15mm x 2mm - $45.00
c) 4.5 grams - 27mm x 14mm x 4mm - $110.00
d) 6.5 grams - 35mm x 25mm x 3mm - $150.00
e) 8.3 grams - 35mm x 21mm x 4mm - $170.00
f) 24.3 grams - 65mm x 36mm x 4mm - $485.00
g) 37.2 grams - 58mm x 57mm x 4mm - $700.00
2) End pieces:
a) 10.7 grams - 33mm x 19mm x 8mm - $210.00
b) 71.3 grams - 60mm x 40mm x 20mm - $1250.00 - stands up nicely on its own.
MOLDAVITE: Tekitite. Beautiful green colored.
Here are some beautiful LARGE pieces. I have not had pieces this large for a long time (my bigger pieces seem to sell fastest, a different problem from other dealers and items). I got these in trade in Tucson this February and was thrilled to get them offered to me. They are all nice complete specimens (the largest has a chip on the underside, and others may have some tiny chipping that isn't noticeable without very careful inspection) that have very nice shapes and surface sculpting.
1) Complete specimens as found:
a) 7.9 grams - 22mm x 20mm x 12mm - $40.00
b) 11.2 grams - 38mm x 20mm x 9mm - $56.00
c) 14.9 grams - 42mm x 20mm x 12mm - $75.00
d) 18.3 grams - 40mm x 34mm x 12mm - $92.00
e) 21.3 grams - 55mm x 32mm x 9mm - $125.00
f) 32.6 grams - 60mm x 40mm x 8mm - $225.00
Please include postage; a couple dollars on small U.S. orders and about $2 per pound on larger items for 1st class (insurance is extra). On small overseas orders, $3 to $5 is generally plenty, and about $1 per ounce (28 grams) on larger items for air-mail. Registration is also recommended on overseas shipments - an extra $10.00.
If you are sending a fax, simply begin transmitting when my line is answered. My new machine will automatically start and receive just as the manual said.
Tuesday, 29 September 2009
Blaine Reed Meteorites- List #77 29SEP09
Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax: (970) 874-1487
…………………………………………….LIST 77
September 29, 2009
Dear Collectors,
Here is an odd-timed offering. It should have gone out on the 15th but I was just opening up for the Denver Show. Last Tuesday I was still traveling home, so this is the earliest I could send something out.
The show was a bit slow on attendance, but not nearly as bad as might be expected (and actually, not as bad as last year). Those that did show up were serious about buying, so I did quite a bit better than last year (where I barely covered the show expenses). I guess being the only guy with a substantial amount and variety of collector's specimens really helped keep my place the place to hang out (I am sure the cooler full of beer had nothing to do with it though).
The only sour note that I hate bring up is the ever increasing theft issue and what it may mean for consignments in the future (and many of you have consigned items at one point or another over the years). I have been loosing more and more to theft every year lately. I have lost more in the past few years than all the previous 20 plus years combined (I will have officially been in business 25 years in October). I talked with a police officer and he commented that it is pretty much the case in all fields right now (so I shouldn't feel singled out). Interestingly, he commented that he thought that it is not really due to our difficult economy as much as it is the development of sites like E-Bay ("the biggest and best fencing operation ever conceived of and created by man" in his words). These sites make it very easy for a thief to dispose of stolen goods and too the end buyers in the field at a higher price no less. In earlier years the thief would be stuck trying to sell the goods back to other dealers at the same shows (hoping word had not spread to them about the missing items) or sell them very cheap to people not really related to the field who couldn't pass up a bargain. This is a BIG problem though and has me having to consider very serious, unwelcome changes to my show style.
Many have told me that I need to lock everything behind glass and only open cases for serious customers that are willing to wait for me to do it for them (and that can be quite delayed when things get busy). I personally don't like this option (though it may very well become a necessity soon the way things are progressing) . I, as a customer and "educator" like being able to handle things and look them over carefully (and letting people just learning about meteorites do the same) with out having to have a person hovering over me waiting for me to finish so they can lock up the case and move on to the next potential customer (this is why I pretty much avoid the locked case sections in antique malls when I am out hunting for "treasures" - too much time too much trouble, only to find that the price (usually the item is sitting on its tag) is too high). A fairly large number of my sales are to people that got interested by handling something from out of this world and were easily able to hand it too me and find that YES, they could actually afford it (things stuck behind glass tend to tell customers "if you have to ask, then you cannot afford it", so they usually do not ask). I do try to generally put small expensive items behind glass. I keep a careful eye on just who is opening up any of my cases (and will quickly appear next to them if they are anyone I do not recognize). This show showed me that this is not fool proof either. Matt Morgan's beautiful 86.4 gram Millbillillie end piece (I can send a picture too those that need one) not only managed to disappear under such conditions, but managed to do it on a slow day (no crowd confusion)from a case that is nearly impossible to open (so a quick casual slick open and close was NOT possible).
I am not sure what the answer security wise is in this case (a number of cameras recording everything - an easy task for Blake to set up, is one possible but expensive starting point). BUT, I probably need to change (and maybe eliminate?) my consignment policies for shows for the time being. I have been noted as being "easy" (to the point of winning a Harvey for "the dealer most willing to") and actually prefer to be that way (within reason and with a few restrictions) . But this quick loss just cost me around 20% of my profits from this show. This is serious business. If something of mine turns up missing (and plenty has the past couple years) that is very painful but at least it was ALREADY PAID FOR. A consigned item disappears and I have to pay for it out of show profits (and I try to not mark these up much so I don't make much on them even if they do sell). Right now I am considering simply shutting down accepting consignments for shows completely (no problems for mail-order sales) for a while. But then consignments allow me to have a really filled room with a really large assortment of things I would never be able to offer otherwise. Yet, the risks and cost have become so high, this seems my best option at this point.
I am considering (on Linda's advice) of having show consignors sign some kind of agreement that I am not responsible for stolen items (obvious negligence excluded of coarse). She tells me that all of the consignments she has done to clothing and construction materials shops has exactly such a clause in them (basically saying that they will do their best to protect the items but they are not responsible for loss or damage). This would mean that consignors could pull their material (or not submit it) if they did not like how I was handling it or planned to display it. One person has already commented that they certainly would NOT accept such a contract under any circumstances. Others have suggested a split of the lost value (I pay half of what I was going to have to pay if the item sold, the consignor looses half). I am hoping some of you out there will contact me and give me some of your thoughts on this (the reason I am bringing up this ugly issue in such a public way). Any and all comments are welcome and are helpful (no wrong answers here), I am truly confused, angered and disheartened by all of this right now and am hoping to find a workable solution for all of us.
Any way, on to some neat little specimens!
BELLE PLAINE, Kansas: (L6). Found 1950. Tkw = 96.4kg.
23.3 grams slice - 55mm x 38mm x 4mm - $60
GOBABEB, Namibia: (H4). Found 1969. Tkw = 27kg.
1.98 gram slice - 15mm x 13mm x 7mm - $20
HaH (222), Libya: (L6). Found 1997. Tkw = 3393 grams.
1.9grams slice - 16mm x 10mm x 4mm - $10 - 50% crusted edge.
HOLBROOK, Arizona: (L6). Fell July 19, 1912.
1.6 gram complete individual - 11mm x 10mm x 7mm - $30
OCHANSK, Russia: (H4). Fell August 30, 1887. Tkw = 500+kg.
.4 grams fragment - 10mm x 6mm x 4mm - $15
SONGYUAN, China: (L6). Fell August 15, 1993. Tkw = about 40kg.
19.6 gram slice - 48mm x 24mm x 5mm - $175 one crusted edge.
TOLAR, New Mexico: (H4). Found 1972, recognized 2002. Tkw = 5350 grams.
9.8 gram slice - 30mm x 30mm x 6mm - $30
15.3 gram slice - 60mm x 20m x 6mm - $45
WAGON MOUND, New Mexico: (L6). Found 1932. Tkw = 87.5kg.
2.0 gram "slice" - 14mm x 5mm x 10mm - $5
WICKENBURG, Arizona: (L6). Found 1940. Tkw = 9.2kg.
21.7 gram slice - 30mm x 29mm x 8mm - $80
IMILAC, Chile: (pallasite). Found 1822.
1.3 gram fragment - 12mm x 8mm x 5mm - $15
ESQUEL, Argentina: (Pallasite).
8.6 grams thin slice - 30mm x 20mm x 2mm - $215 - really clear crystals!
LIBYAN DESERT GLASS: Ancient stone tool
I got this from a professional archeologist that knows what he is doing (it comes with a signed card). It is a nice Neolithic Blade that was made from a really nice and clear piece of Libyan Glass.
2.0 grams - 33mm x 15mm x 3mm - $100
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax: (970) 874-1487
…………………………………………….LIST 77
September 29, 2009
Dear Collectors,
Here is an odd-timed offering. It should have gone out on the 15th but I was just opening up for the Denver Show. Last Tuesday I was still traveling home, so this is the earliest I could send something out.
The show was a bit slow on attendance, but not nearly as bad as might be expected (and actually, not as bad as last year). Those that did show up were serious about buying, so I did quite a bit better than last year (where I barely covered the show expenses). I guess being the only guy with a substantial amount and variety of collector's specimens really helped keep my place the place to hang out (I am sure the cooler full of beer had nothing to do with it though).
The only sour note that I hate bring up is the ever increasing theft issue and what it may mean for consignments in the future (and many of you have consigned items at one point or another over the years). I have been loosing more and more to theft every year lately. I have lost more in the past few years than all the previous 20 plus years combined (I will have officially been in business 25 years in October). I talked with a police officer and he commented that it is pretty much the case in all fields right now (so I shouldn't feel singled out). Interestingly, he commented that he thought that it is not really due to our difficult economy as much as it is the development of sites like E-Bay ("the biggest and best fencing operation ever conceived of and created by man" in his words). These sites make it very easy for a thief to dispose of stolen goods and too the end buyers in the field at a higher price no less. In earlier years the thief would be stuck trying to sell the goods back to other dealers at the same shows (hoping word had not spread to them about the missing items) or sell them very cheap to people not really related to the field who couldn't pass up a bargain. This is a BIG problem though and has me having to consider very serious, unwelcome changes to my show style.
Many have told me that I need to lock everything behind glass and only open cases for serious customers that are willing to wait for me to do it for them (and that can be quite delayed when things get busy). I personally don't like this option (though it may very well become a necessity soon the way things are progressing) . I, as a customer and "educator" like being able to handle things and look them over carefully (and letting people just learning about meteorites do the same) with out having to have a person hovering over me waiting for me to finish so they can lock up the case and move on to the next potential customer (this is why I pretty much avoid the locked case sections in antique malls when I am out hunting for "treasures" - too much time too much trouble, only to find that the price (usually the item is sitting on its tag) is too high). A fairly large number of my sales are to people that got interested by handling something from out of this world and were easily able to hand it too me and find that YES, they could actually afford it (things stuck behind glass tend to tell customers "if you have to ask, then you cannot afford it", so they usually do not ask). I do try to generally put small expensive items behind glass. I keep a careful eye on just who is opening up any of my cases (and will quickly appear next to them if they are anyone I do not recognize). This show showed me that this is not fool proof either. Matt Morgan's beautiful 86.4 gram Millbillillie end piece (I can send a picture too those that need one) not only managed to disappear under such conditions, but managed to do it on a slow day (no crowd confusion)from a case that is nearly impossible to open (so a quick casual slick open and close was NOT possible).
I am not sure what the answer security wise is in this case (a number of cameras recording everything - an easy task for Blake to set up, is one possible but expensive starting point). BUT, I probably need to change (and maybe eliminate?) my consignment policies for shows for the time being. I have been noted as being "easy" (to the point of winning a Harvey for "the dealer most willing to") and actually prefer to be that way (within reason and with a few restrictions) . But this quick loss just cost me around 20% of my profits from this show. This is serious business. If something of mine turns up missing (and plenty has the past couple years) that is very painful but at least it was ALREADY PAID FOR. A consigned item disappears and I have to pay for it out of show profits (and I try to not mark these up much so I don't make much on them even if they do sell). Right now I am considering simply shutting down accepting consignments for shows completely (no problems for mail-order sales) for a while. But then consignments allow me to have a really filled room with a really large assortment of things I would never be able to offer otherwise. Yet, the risks and cost have become so high, this seems my best option at this point.
I am considering (on Linda's advice) of having show consignors sign some kind of agreement that I am not responsible for stolen items (obvious negligence excluded of coarse). She tells me that all of the consignments she has done to clothing and construction materials shops has exactly such a clause in them (basically saying that they will do their best to protect the items but they are not responsible for loss or damage). This would mean that consignors could pull their material (or not submit it) if they did not like how I was handling it or planned to display it. One person has already commented that they certainly would NOT accept such a contract under any circumstances. Others have suggested a split of the lost value (I pay half of what I was going to have to pay if the item sold, the consignor looses half). I am hoping some of you out there will contact me and give me some of your thoughts on this (the reason I am bringing up this ugly issue in such a public way). Any and all comments are welcome and are helpful (no wrong answers here), I am truly confused, angered and disheartened by all of this right now and am hoping to find a workable solution for all of us.
Any way, on to some neat little specimens!
BELLE PLAINE, Kansas: (L6). Found 1950. Tkw = 96.4kg.
23.3 grams slice - 55mm x 38mm x 4mm - $60
GOBABEB, Namibia: (H4). Found 1969. Tkw = 27kg.
1.98 gram slice - 15mm x 13mm x 7mm - $20
HaH (222), Libya: (L6). Found 1997. Tkw = 3393 grams.
1.9grams slice - 16mm x 10mm x 4mm - $10 - 50% crusted edge.
HOLBROOK, Arizona: (L6). Fell July 19, 1912.
1.6 gram complete individual - 11mm x 10mm x 7mm - $30
OCHANSK, Russia: (H4). Fell August 30, 1887. Tkw = 500+kg.
.4 grams fragment - 10mm x 6mm x 4mm - $15
SONGYUAN, China: (L6). Fell August 15, 1993. Tkw = about 40kg.
19.6 gram slice - 48mm x 24mm x 5mm - $175 one crusted edge.
TOLAR, New Mexico: (H4). Found 1972, recognized 2002. Tkw = 5350 grams.
9.8 gram slice - 30mm x 30mm x 6mm - $30
15.3 gram slice - 60mm x 20m x 6mm - $45
WAGON MOUND, New Mexico: (L6). Found 1932. Tkw = 87.5kg.
2.0 gram "slice" - 14mm x 5mm x 10mm - $5
WICKENBURG, Arizona: (L6). Found 1940. Tkw = 9.2kg.
21.7 gram slice - 30mm x 29mm x 8mm - $80
IMILAC, Chile: (pallasite). Found 1822.
1.3 gram fragment - 12mm x 8mm x 5mm - $15
ESQUEL, Argentina: (Pallasite).
8.6 grams thin slice - 30mm x 20mm x 2mm - $215 - really clear crystals!
LIBYAN DESERT GLASS: Ancient stone tool
I got this from a professional archeologist that knows what he is doing (it comes with a signed card). It is a nice Neolithic Blade that was made from a really nice and clear piece of Libyan Glass.
2.0 grams - 33mm x 15mm x 3mm - $100
Wednesday, 2 September 2009
Blaine Reed Meteorites List #76
Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
…………………………………………………LIST 76
September 1, 2009
Dear Collectors,
Here is my first offering in a bit over two months. Things have been very busy this summer, both personally and business wise. I am just now beginning to think about the too soon to be here Denver Show (notes on that below). Many of the items listed today are special things that I have had set aside for quite a long time for my collection. The simple reason for this decision to offer them is that I just replaced my old, and until recently reliable, Toyota with a newer used car. Selling a few things here (or anywhere) will make the modest note I am carrying on that newer car go away. Maybe not the smartest decision from a longer term financial view (despite the "economic crisis" meteorites seem to be doing just fine and are, if anything, going up in value once again) but it will help me rest easier.
About the Denver Show:
I will be at my usual spot - Room 224 of the Holiday Inn at the intersection of I-25 and I-70. I will be open from late morning Tuesday September 15th through late afternoon Sunday September 20th (but will be gone from home roughly September 11th through September 22nd to allow some time to visit with a couple relatives fighting very serious illnesses a bit before and after the show). I know there is word spreading that many people will be showing up and selling by Saturday the 12th. It was against the show rules to be open before Tuesday noon before. No longer. Now many dealers are trying to endlessly stretch this show out (thinking that "the early bird gets the worm" - fine if you want worms I suppose) by arriving and opening a couple days earlier than anyone else. Soon this will get stretched out into another two week plus Tucson like event. I am sorry to say that I have no intention of playing this game. I have arrived a day or two early a couple times in the past. I never gained any extra sales from it. Most (if not all) meteorite buyers hold onto their money until they get a look at all that is going to be available before spending their money. The early days I have been at this show simply cost a lot in food (including beer, of coarse) and a really inflated motel room bill and generally did not generate enough sales to come close to covering those expenses.
CANYON DIABLO, Arizona: Graphite nodule.
I have not had one of these in a long time. This is a complete nodule that has been lightly brushed to clearly show its shiny gray graphite color. It does have the same color as a typical brushed Diablo for the most part. I showed it one person who did not believe that it was a graphite nodule. A simple demonstration of how well and easily you can write with the thing rapidly removed his doubts.
113.3 gram individual - 65mm x 35mm x 30mm - $150
NWA (5777): (H5), W2, S1. Found before February 2008, Tkw = 581.1 grams.
I picked up a single stone of this at the Tucson show in 2008. It was another one of those that the Moroccan seller kept telling me "primitive achondrite" but was not. It really does resemble the NWA (725) stuff though. It has the same external texture (even showing a large patch of nice black crust) and a virtually identical internal texture as well (lots of metal, very porous). Of coarse, it is the research that matters. This turned out to be an H chondrite, not an Acapucoite or Winonaite. I am offering ALL the pieces I have remaining after research specimens and thin-section pieces were removed. I thought about cutting it all up (the slices would be quite nice) but decided that it would be nice to leave it as intact as possible.
a) 10.0g complete slice - 35mm x 34mm x 4mm - $10
b) 515.7g main mass - 72mm x 67mm 50mm - $350
RICHFIELD, Kansas: (LL3.7). Found 1983, Tkw = 40.8 kilograms.
I once owned all of this, now I am down to just a few small pieces (I do have a 1714g complete slice that is likely the word's largest LL3 slice in private hands, but I think I already have a home for that one - but ask if interested just in case it turns out that I am wrong on that). I just got this little beauty back from a collector who was selling part of his collection. Someone though has polished both sides of this to a polish that I have never been able to achieve with my equipment. It was obviously polished by someone that has the super fine diamond equipment used for preparing thin-sections. This is a great specimen and priced (for now) a bit lower than what I have my other remaining specimens of Richfield at on my basic catalog.
19.8 gram slice - 50mm x 35mm x 3mm - $175
DHOFAR (1286), Oman: (Polymict eucrite). Found December 2005, Tkw = 898 grams.
I got a few bits of this in a trade some time ago. I set it aside as it was labeled NWA (1286), polymict eucrite (this, by the way, means that it has fragments of eucrite material from several different original rock sources that got mixed together rather than just one that got smashed up and re-solidified) . As no such thing turned up in the official listings, I was at a loss as to what to do with this stuff. A call to the person I got this from quickly fixed the problem. They informed me that it was Dhofar (1286) and not NWA material. Yep, this one is listed. This is mostly a medium gray with some lighter fragments mixed in (looking very much like a howardite, but it lacks diogenite material or hypersthene) .
a) 3.1 gram cut fragment - 25mm x 9mm x 8mm - $37
b) 11.4 gram cut fragment - 30mm x 20mm x 10mm - $130
MILLBILLILLIE, Australia: (Eucrite). Fell October 1960. Tkw = 150+ kilograms.
Now this is not your average Millbillillie. It is a complete individual that shows thick shiny black crust with lots of thick flow lines (there is a small natural chipped area from its fall - about 4mm by 20mm perhaps - on the bottom). There is some of the usual adhering orange dirt (mostly on the bottom again), but very thin and very little compared with most Millbillillie specimens. I have this set aside for probably 20 years or so. I got it back when Millbillillie first came out in quantity. This is a superior piece and I have priced it only a bit higher than what I have sold more typical Millbillillie specimens for (per gram wise) recently.
109.3 gram individual - 60mm x 38mm x 35mm - $1200
ZAGAMI, Nigeria: (Shergottite) . Fell October 3, 1962. Tkw = 18.1 kilograms.
This is just a nice basic rectangular shaped slice (with only one cut edge). It is thick enough that it could be cut into a couple (perhaps more if you have a wire saw) thinner slices. This is all the finer grained material (some pieces of Zagami were quite coarse grained) and only has a few small shock veins at one edge. Just a nice basic sample of a witnessed fall Mars rock (and my last substantial piece).
6.9 gram slice - 27mm x 19mm x 4mm - $3500
MOLDAVITE:
Here is something really special. At least I have never seen anything like it. This is a nicely sculpted large flat-ish individual. When I got this I noticed that it had a fairly long (about 17mm) crack that went all the way through the thicker portion of the specimen. I originally thought that this was a recent or water erroded break. WRONG! Careful inspection reveals that this is actually a break that occurred just as the specimen was really solidifying. Looking with a lens, you can see many fine needles of glass that connect both sides of the crack. These are stretched glass fibers that formed because the interior of this specimen was not quite solidified yet when this crack was formed. Really neat and really rare (?) and admittedly priced as such.
13.1gram individual - 38mm x 33mm x 8mm - $300
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
…………………………………………………LIST 76
September 1, 2009
Dear Collectors,
Here is my first offering in a bit over two months. Things have been very busy this summer, both personally and business wise. I am just now beginning to think about the too soon to be here Denver Show (notes on that below). Many of the items listed today are special things that I have had set aside for quite a long time for my collection. The simple reason for this decision to offer them is that I just replaced my old, and until recently reliable, Toyota with a newer used car. Selling a few things here (or anywhere) will make the modest note I am carrying on that newer car go away. Maybe not the smartest decision from a longer term financial view (despite the "economic crisis" meteorites seem to be doing just fine and are, if anything, going up in value once again) but it will help me rest easier.
About the Denver Show:
I will be at my usual spot - Room 224 of the Holiday Inn at the intersection of I-25 and I-70. I will be open from late morning Tuesday September 15th through late afternoon Sunday September 20th (but will be gone from home roughly September 11th through September 22nd to allow some time to visit with a couple relatives fighting very serious illnesses a bit before and after the show). I know there is word spreading that many people will be showing up and selling by Saturday the 12th. It was against the show rules to be open before Tuesday noon before. No longer. Now many dealers are trying to endlessly stretch this show out (thinking that "the early bird gets the worm" - fine if you want worms I suppose) by arriving and opening a couple days earlier than anyone else. Soon this will get stretched out into another two week plus Tucson like event. I am sorry to say that I have no intention of playing this game. I have arrived a day or two early a couple times in the past. I never gained any extra sales from it. Most (if not all) meteorite buyers hold onto their money until they get a look at all that is going to be available before spending their money. The early days I have been at this show simply cost a lot in food (including beer, of coarse) and a really inflated motel room bill and generally did not generate enough sales to come close to covering those expenses.
CANYON DIABLO, Arizona: Graphite nodule.
I have not had one of these in a long time. This is a complete nodule that has been lightly brushed to clearly show its shiny gray graphite color. It does have the same color as a typical brushed Diablo for the most part. I showed it one person who did not believe that it was a graphite nodule. A simple demonstration of how well and easily you can write with the thing rapidly removed his doubts.
113.3 gram individual - 65mm x 35mm x 30mm - $150
NWA (5777): (H5), W2, S1. Found before February 2008, Tkw = 581.1 grams.
I picked up a single stone of this at the Tucson show in 2008. It was another one of those that the Moroccan seller kept telling me "primitive achondrite" but was not. It really does resemble the NWA (725) stuff though. It has the same external texture (even showing a large patch of nice black crust) and a virtually identical internal texture as well (lots of metal, very porous). Of coarse, it is the research that matters. This turned out to be an H chondrite, not an Acapucoite or Winonaite. I am offering ALL the pieces I have remaining after research specimens and thin-section pieces were removed. I thought about cutting it all up (the slices would be quite nice) but decided that it would be nice to leave it as intact as possible.
a) 10.0g complete slice - 35mm x 34mm x 4mm - $10
b) 515.7g main mass - 72mm x 67mm 50mm - $350
RICHFIELD, Kansas: (LL3.7). Found 1983, Tkw = 40.8 kilograms.
I once owned all of this, now I am down to just a few small pieces (I do have a 1714g complete slice that is likely the word's largest LL3 slice in private hands, but I think I already have a home for that one - but ask if interested just in case it turns out that I am wrong on that). I just got this little beauty back from a collector who was selling part of his collection. Someone though has polished both sides of this to a polish that I have never been able to achieve with my equipment. It was obviously polished by someone that has the super fine diamond equipment used for preparing thin-sections. This is a great specimen and priced (for now) a bit lower than what I have my other remaining specimens of Richfield at on my basic catalog.
19.8 gram slice - 50mm x 35mm x 3mm - $175
DHOFAR (1286), Oman: (Polymict eucrite). Found December 2005, Tkw = 898 grams.
I got a few bits of this in a trade some time ago. I set it aside as it was labeled NWA (1286), polymict eucrite (this, by the way, means that it has fragments of eucrite material from several different original rock sources that got mixed together rather than just one that got smashed up and re-solidified) . As no such thing turned up in the official listings, I was at a loss as to what to do with this stuff. A call to the person I got this from quickly fixed the problem. They informed me that it was Dhofar (1286) and not NWA material. Yep, this one is listed. This is mostly a medium gray with some lighter fragments mixed in (looking very much like a howardite, but it lacks diogenite material or hypersthene) .
a) 3.1 gram cut fragment - 25mm x 9mm x 8mm - $37
b) 11.4 gram cut fragment - 30mm x 20mm x 10mm - $130
MILLBILLILLIE, Australia: (Eucrite). Fell October 1960. Tkw = 150+ kilograms.
Now this is not your average Millbillillie. It is a complete individual that shows thick shiny black crust with lots of thick flow lines (there is a small natural chipped area from its fall - about 4mm by 20mm perhaps - on the bottom). There is some of the usual adhering orange dirt (mostly on the bottom again), but very thin and very little compared with most Millbillillie specimens. I have this set aside for probably 20 years or so. I got it back when Millbillillie first came out in quantity. This is a superior piece and I have priced it only a bit higher than what I have sold more typical Millbillillie specimens for (per gram wise) recently.
109.3 gram individual - 60mm x 38mm x 35mm - $1200
ZAGAMI, Nigeria: (Shergottite) . Fell October 3, 1962. Tkw = 18.1 kilograms.
This is just a nice basic rectangular shaped slice (with only one cut edge). It is thick enough that it could be cut into a couple (perhaps more if you have a wire saw) thinner slices. This is all the finer grained material (some pieces of Zagami were quite coarse grained) and only has a few small shock veins at one edge. Just a nice basic sample of a witnessed fall Mars rock (and my last substantial piece).
6.9 gram slice - 27mm x 19mm x 4mm - $3500
MOLDAVITE:
Here is something really special. At least I have never seen anything like it. This is a nicely sculpted large flat-ish individual. When I got this I noticed that it had a fairly long (about 17mm) crack that went all the way through the thicker portion of the specimen. I originally thought that this was a recent or water erroded break. WRONG! Careful inspection reveals that this is actually a break that occurred just as the specimen was really solidifying. Looking with a lens, you can see many fine needles of glass that connect both sides of the crack. These are stretched glass fibers that formed because the interior of this specimen was not quite solidified yet when this crack was formed. Really neat and really rare (?) and admittedly priced as such.
13.1gram individual - 38mm x 33mm x 8mm - $300
Wednesday, 24 June 2009
Blaine Reed Meteorites- List 75 23JUN09
Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
(970) 874-1487
……………………………………………..LIST 75
June 23, 2009
Dear Collectors,
Here is my first e-mail offering in quite some time (I know, it is a week late). Things have been relatively busy here, both with meteorites and plenty of other things (some pleasant like friends visiting, some not like repairing transmissions) . Any way, I pulled a few interesting, mostly larger items unfortunately (my apologies to those of us on a tight budget), to offer to let you all know that I am still out here, raise a little money (partly for above mentioned transmission work) and make a few small openings on the shelves and in boxes in my office.
GIBEON, Namibia: Fine octahedrite (IVA). Found 1836.
Here is a nice little paperweight I prepared for a customer who decided that they really did not need it after I did the sanding and etching work on it. It is a nice natural golf-ball or so sized individual with some nice soft thumb printing. The customer wanted an end piece of Gibeon (which I did not have). This piece had a nice flat face (40mm x 30mm) that I sanded and etched. Not really an end piece, but a nice little display specimen none the less.
244.7 gram natural individual with 40mm x 30mm etched face - $220
GLORIETTA MOUNTAIN, New Mexico: (Pallasite).
I know, I just had these on my last offering. BUT, I quite rapidly sold out of all of those pieces. I had planned on simply giving a quick "I have more now" note here but then decided it better to take a little space and actually list the sizes I now have once more. These, as before, are all iron (no olivine). They have a fantastic vibrant etch (one of the best of any meteorites I have seen). These are thin, etched on both sides and all have at least one natural edge (and most have much more). I have been told that this is likely the end of this material for me, so get some now if you want a piece, it may not be available in the near future.
1) Slices, etched on both sides:
a) 10.3 grams - 50mm x 20mm x 1.5mm - $40
b) 21.6 grams - 45mm x 27mm x 2.5mm - $85
c) 41.2 grams - 56mm x 43mm x 2mm - $160
d) 62.1 grams - 64mm x 45mm x 3mm - $235
e) 123.1 grams - 82mm x 65mm x 2.5mm - $450
ALLENDE, Mexico: Carbonaceous chondrite (CV3). Fell February 8, 1969. Huss numbered.
This is a super fresh (likely picked up within a day or two of the fall) end piece. It has pristine black crust covering most (probably about 95%) of the backside. The cut face shows lots of CAIs, including a group that is about a centimeter across. What I had not noticed when I put this beautiful specimen aside long ago (probably 15 years or so) is that it has a Huss number (H103.79) painted on it (sorry, I could not find the associated card. I probably never had it, but I will send it to the buyer of this piece if it does turn up).
105.8 gram Huss numbered end piece - 56mm x 52mm x 16mm - $950
NWA Unclassified: Likely (L6).
I picked up this interesting specimen this February in Tucson. It showed raised black shock lines on a wind polished end (they are more resistant to erosion than the surrounding material). There were a couple obvious pieces that had broken off of the specimen at some time (long ago) that also were clearly fractured along internal shock lines. The remainder of the exterior shows some thumb printed fusion crust and lots of late atmospheric break "slickenside" surfaces (that have also developed small- scale thumb printing). In all, this rock appeared to likely contain tons of shock veins. I cut one nice end off (to give a 130mm x 75mm cut face). The interior was not quite what I had hoped for. There are a good number of obvious shock veins crossing the cut faces, but not the many dozens I had hoped for. An interesting (and affordable) specimen with plenty to show (particularly shock lines and how they effect meteorite break up) none the less.
1837 gram individual with end piece cut off (included ) - 140mm x 105mm x 75mm - $350
HUCKITTA, Australia: (Pallasite). Found 1924.
This is a fairly large chunk of the usual oxidized material. BUT, this is a really solid piece (most were highly fractured and broke apart easily). I did cut a small end (about 30mm x 22mm) off to show the interior (the usual dark angular olivine crystals in the metallic blue-gray magnetite/ hematite matrix). This piece could easily be cut down into lots of slices but is also quite nice the way it is.
506.7 gram fragment with 30mm x 22mm window - 80mm x 70mm x 40mm - $625
VACA MUERTA, Chile: (Mesosiderite) . Found 1861.
This is a LARGE end piece that I had in my display collection for probably 20 years now. I got it from the original source all those years ago and paid a pretty good premium for it due to its size and quality. It is not loaded with metal, but it does have a lot more than most Vaca specimens (including one roughly 1cm sized chunk in the middle of the polished face). It also shows a couple large eucritic inclusions. One (23mm x 13mm) is on the cut face and another (22mm x 15mm) is a round nodule hanging out of the side of the back.
1625.3 gram end piece - 110mm x 85mm x 85mm - $2500
CHINESE TEKTITES: A few select special/ interesting pieces.
1) 43.3g Dumb-bell.
This is not horribly special, just interesting in that it shows a high degree of water wear (smooth except a few shallow pits). With its fairly narrow neck (around 12mm diameter or less) between the two ends, I find it fairly surprising that it did not break while obviously being harshly beat around in a river for many years.
43.3 gram individual - 75mm x 23mm x 23mm - $15
2) 70.4 gram tear drop.
This is an excellent and interesting specimen. It has a very distinct tear drop shape with a thin neck and a large bulbous base. The neck also has a natural cooling (twisting, stretching?) crack that nearly severed the specimen as well.
70.4 gram individual - 75mm x 35mm x 30mm - $35
3) 60.5 gram HOLLOW individual:
This is the really special one. I had read about these awhile ago, but only recently was able to acquire one (actually two - I am hanging on to one for myself). These basically look like a regular rounded tektite, but they are very light for their size. They are basically hollow spheres that supposedly have the ancient high altitude atmosphere still trapped inside them (making them interesting to scientists, but they have to be cut or drilled open for analysis work on these gasses). I did some density work on this one and have determined that it contains a roughly 10 cubic centimeter hole inside. I am including a slightly smaller in volume similar shaped tektite individual that weighs almost 75 grams. Comparing this with the larger but lighter hollow specimen makes the difference very apparent.
60.5 gram individual - 45mm x 45mm x 25mm - $250
FULGURITES: Lightning fused rock from near Ouray, Colorado. Found June 30, 2000.
These are the largest fulgurite specimens I have ever had (I do have access to a huge beer-flat sized piece as well). They were found high on a mountainside near Ouray (about 60 miles south of me) at around 12,800 feet - so they may be some of the highest recovered as well. These are generally roughly tubular with some hints of branching but they re so large that this gets lost on some specimens. These are mostly gray to pinkish in color (due to the rhyolitic volcanic rocks that were fused to form these), but some show various colors (green, brown, bluish) glass among the bubbles and fused cobbles. Really neat pieces!
a) 276 grams - 120mm x 65mm x 50mm - $100 - nice tube with branch stub.
b) 337 grams - 115mm x 90mm x 40mm - $120 - many large attached rocks.
c) 448 grams - 150mm x 90mm x 55mm - $155 - nice branching tube with lots of cobbles.
d) 469 grams - 120mm x 95mm x 60mm - $165 - flattened tube. Shows swirled glass of many colors.
e) 510 grams - 130mm x 95mm x 80mm - $175 - large scale bubbly glass of many colors.
f) 765 grams - 120mm x 120mm x 80mm - $265 - the best of all!
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
(970) 874-1487
……………………………………………..LIST 75
June 23, 2009
Dear Collectors,
Here is my first e-mail offering in quite some time (I know, it is a week late). Things have been relatively busy here, both with meteorites and plenty of other things (some pleasant like friends visiting, some not like repairing transmissions) . Any way, I pulled a few interesting, mostly larger items unfortunately (my apologies to those of us on a tight budget), to offer to let you all know that I am still out here, raise a little money (partly for above mentioned transmission work) and make a few small openings on the shelves and in boxes in my office.
GIBEON, Namibia: Fine octahedrite (IVA). Found 1836.
Here is a nice little paperweight I prepared for a customer who decided that they really did not need it after I did the sanding and etching work on it. It is a nice natural golf-ball or so sized individual with some nice soft thumb printing. The customer wanted an end piece of Gibeon (which I did not have). This piece had a nice flat face (40mm x 30mm) that I sanded and etched. Not really an end piece, but a nice little display specimen none the less.
244.7 gram natural individual with 40mm x 30mm etched face - $220
GLORIETTA MOUNTAIN, New Mexico: (Pallasite).
I know, I just had these on my last offering. BUT, I quite rapidly sold out of all of those pieces. I had planned on simply giving a quick "I have more now" note here but then decided it better to take a little space and actually list the sizes I now have once more. These, as before, are all iron (no olivine). They have a fantastic vibrant etch (one of the best of any meteorites I have seen). These are thin, etched on both sides and all have at least one natural edge (and most have much more). I have been told that this is likely the end of this material for me, so get some now if you want a piece, it may not be available in the near future.
1) Slices, etched on both sides:
a) 10.3 grams - 50mm x 20mm x 1.5mm - $40
b) 21.6 grams - 45mm x 27mm x 2.5mm - $85
c) 41.2 grams - 56mm x 43mm x 2mm - $160
d) 62.1 grams - 64mm x 45mm x 3mm - $235
e) 123.1 grams - 82mm x 65mm x 2.5mm - $450
ALLENDE, Mexico: Carbonaceous chondrite (CV3). Fell February 8, 1969. Huss numbered.
This is a super fresh (likely picked up within a day or two of the fall) end piece. It has pristine black crust covering most (probably about 95%) of the backside. The cut face shows lots of CAIs, including a group that is about a centimeter across. What I had not noticed when I put this beautiful specimen aside long ago (probably 15 years or so) is that it has a Huss number (H103.79) painted on it (sorry, I could not find the associated card. I probably never had it, but I will send it to the buyer of this piece if it does turn up).
105.8 gram Huss numbered end piece - 56mm x 52mm x 16mm - $950
NWA Unclassified: Likely (L6).
I picked up this interesting specimen this February in Tucson. It showed raised black shock lines on a wind polished end (they are more resistant to erosion than the surrounding material). There were a couple obvious pieces that had broken off of the specimen at some time (long ago) that also were clearly fractured along internal shock lines. The remainder of the exterior shows some thumb printed fusion crust and lots of late atmospheric break "slickenside" surfaces (that have also developed small- scale thumb printing). In all, this rock appeared to likely contain tons of shock veins. I cut one nice end off (to give a 130mm x 75mm cut face). The interior was not quite what I had hoped for. There are a good number of obvious shock veins crossing the cut faces, but not the many dozens I had hoped for. An interesting (and affordable) specimen with plenty to show (particularly shock lines and how they effect meteorite break up) none the less.
1837 gram individual with end piece cut off (included ) - 140mm x 105mm x 75mm - $350
HUCKITTA, Australia: (Pallasite). Found 1924.
This is a fairly large chunk of the usual oxidized material. BUT, this is a really solid piece (most were highly fractured and broke apart easily). I did cut a small end (about 30mm x 22mm) off to show the interior (the usual dark angular olivine crystals in the metallic blue-gray magnetite/ hematite matrix). This piece could easily be cut down into lots of slices but is also quite nice the way it is.
506.7 gram fragment with 30mm x 22mm window - 80mm x 70mm x 40mm - $625
VACA MUERTA, Chile: (Mesosiderite) . Found 1861.
This is a LARGE end piece that I had in my display collection for probably 20 years now. I got it from the original source all those years ago and paid a pretty good premium for it due to its size and quality. It is not loaded with metal, but it does have a lot more than most Vaca specimens (including one roughly 1cm sized chunk in the middle of the polished face). It also shows a couple large eucritic inclusions. One (23mm x 13mm) is on the cut face and another (22mm x 15mm) is a round nodule hanging out of the side of the back.
1625.3 gram end piece - 110mm x 85mm x 85mm - $2500
CHINESE TEKTITES: A few select special/ interesting pieces.
1) 43.3g Dumb-bell.
This is not horribly special, just interesting in that it shows a high degree of water wear (smooth except a few shallow pits). With its fairly narrow neck (around 12mm diameter or less) between the two ends, I find it fairly surprising that it did not break while obviously being harshly beat around in a river for many years.
43.3 gram individual - 75mm x 23mm x 23mm - $15
2) 70.4 gram tear drop.
This is an excellent and interesting specimen. It has a very distinct tear drop shape with a thin neck and a large bulbous base. The neck also has a natural cooling (twisting, stretching?) crack that nearly severed the specimen as well.
70.4 gram individual - 75mm x 35mm x 30mm - $35
3) 60.5 gram HOLLOW individual:
This is the really special one. I had read about these awhile ago, but only recently was able to acquire one (actually two - I am hanging on to one for myself). These basically look like a regular rounded tektite, but they are very light for their size. They are basically hollow spheres that supposedly have the ancient high altitude atmosphere still trapped inside them (making them interesting to scientists, but they have to be cut or drilled open for analysis work on these gasses). I did some density work on this one and have determined that it contains a roughly 10 cubic centimeter hole inside. I am including a slightly smaller in volume similar shaped tektite individual that weighs almost 75 grams. Comparing this with the larger but lighter hollow specimen makes the difference very apparent.
60.5 gram individual - 45mm x 45mm x 25mm - $250
FULGURITES: Lightning fused rock from near Ouray, Colorado. Found June 30, 2000.
These are the largest fulgurite specimens I have ever had (I do have access to a huge beer-flat sized piece as well). They were found high on a mountainside near Ouray (about 60 miles south of me) at around 12,800 feet - so they may be some of the highest recovered as well. These are generally roughly tubular with some hints of branching but they re so large that this gets lost on some specimens. These are mostly gray to pinkish in color (due to the rhyolitic volcanic rocks that were fused to form these), but some show various colors (green, brown, bluish) glass among the bubbles and fused cobbles. Really neat pieces!
a) 276 grams - 120mm x 65mm x 50mm - $100 - nice tube with branch stub.
b) 337 grams - 115mm x 90mm x 40mm - $120 - many large attached rocks.
c) 448 grams - 150mm x 90mm x 55mm - $155 - nice branching tube with lots of cobbles.
d) 469 grams - 120mm x 95mm x 60mm - $165 - flattened tube. Shows swirled glass of many colors.
e) 510 grams - 130mm x 95mm x 80mm - $175 - large scale bubbly glass of many colors.
f) 765 grams - 120mm x 120mm x 80mm - $265 - the best of all!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
