Oyo, Nigeria (8°16’55.83"N, 3°34’1.72"E) Chondrite / L3.6

Lot Description:
Aba Panu is a dense stone meteorite. One face of this slice is highly polished while the other has a matte finish. A variety of lightly-hued inclusions are suspended throughout a gray matrix. Round and ellipsoidal chondrules (for which the chondrite class of meteorites is named) as well as chondrule fragments abound. Less-common armored chondrules (those circumscribed by a wall of metallic “armor”) are also visible. The cut surface is further embellished by gleaming flakes of metal dispersed throughout the matrix. (This slice was cut from lot 42.)
164 x 176 x 2.5mm (6.5 x 7 x 0.1 in.)
152.9g (0.33 lb)

On the afternoon of April 19, 2018, a large fireball detonated over southwestern Nigeria approximately 100 miles north of Lagos. Many stones were collected at multiple locations and the meteorite is named Aba Panu for the village near the center of the strewn field. Aba Panu is a primitive chondrite, which is to say it was not exposed to undue amounts of heat and is largely unmetamorphosed (unchanged) from the time it formed; in effect, what is seen here approximates the raw ingredients of our planets.

Christie's would like to thank Dr. Alan E. Rubin at the Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, University of California, Los Angeles for his assistance in preparing this catalogue.