4 Crazy Meteorites for Sale in Natural History Auction
February 12th, 2008 by BallerHouse
Coming up on March 21, you’ll have the opportunity to bid on a huge assortment of unique, weird items at I.M. Chait’s Natural History Auction in Beverly Hills. In our first of several posts on upcoming auction, we’re introducing you to four extremely rare meteorites, each with its own crazy story.
Donnie Darko fans are going to love this one… In 2003, the first meteorite from our selection (pictured above), plummeted through the roof of a two-story house in a South Chicago suburb. The meteorite eventually came to rest on the floor after boring through an air-conditioning duct and the home’s dining room ceiling. This is the first recorded meteorite in modern times to hit a densely populated suburb, and reporters were on scene to record the event. Included in the lot are a DVD and photographs of local media coverage, the two-part air-conditioning duct, and sections of the roof shingle likewise smashed by the meteorite. Bid estimates range from $60,000 to $80,000.
The second meteorite, capable of holding a baseball in its naturally-formed socket, landed in the Kalahari desert in Namibia thousands of years ago. For $8,000 to $10,000, you’ll get a metal stand included in your purchase. No word on whether or not the baseball comes with the lot.
The third meteorite came out of the rainforest in Brazil, where locals initially believed it to be an artifact from the mythological ape-man creature known as the Gundabalos. When Australian artist Victor M. Pracas heard of the meteorite, he purchased it from the locals and decided to add to the mythology by sculpting a discrete area of the ‘face’ to create a more life-like appearance. The 69.2 lb meteorite is estimated to go for $18,000 to $22,000.
The last meteorite from our selection is the only “killer meteorite” known to be in existence. In 1972, Venezuelen farmhands found this meteorite alongside the carcass of a pulverized cow after hearing a sonic boom the night before. At $500 to $700, this killer meteorite is the biggest bargain of the bunch; although each meteorite should be evaluated individually for investment purposes.
Natural history items and meteorites, especially, are often viewed as solid investments. As I.M. Chait states in the first listing we discussed, “there is a smaller quantity of meteorite material on the earth than there is gold or diamonds.”
Listing links: suburban meteorite, baseball meteorite, ape-man meteorite, killer meteorite
Tags: art, Collections, meteorites, natural history
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April 14th, 2009 at 7:04 pm 1
How can i get in contact with Victor Pracas.
August 24th, 2009 at 8:07 am 2
i have many kind of meteorites