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Lot 1146

Two Allende Specimens - Complete Individual and Slice

27 May 2010, 13:00 EDT
New York

Sold for US$1,586 inc. premium

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Two Allende Specimens - Complete Individual and Slice

Carbonaceous Chondrite – CV3
Pueblito de Allende, Chihuahua State, Mexico

On Feb. 8, 1969, at 1:05 a.m., a meteorite streaked through Earth's atmosphere toward Mexico, exploded into an immense fireball, then shattered and rained fragments over a strewnfield covering more than 60 square miles. By virtue of its carbonaceous chondrite classification, Allende, the most widely studied meteorite in the world, contains particles that scientists believe were created during the explosion of a supernova prior to the formation of our solar system. Chemical analysis of this class of meteorites has also revealed both biological and non-biological amino acids. Some have speculated that these materials suggest the possibility that carbonaceous chondrites were the delivery mechanism of the building blocks of life to our planet. Comprising a complete individual as well as a slice, individual weighs 152 grams (0.33lbs); measures 2.25 x 1.75 x 1.5in; slice weighs 4.1 grams; slice measures 1.5 x 1in (2)

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