Pallasites are considered the most beautiful otherworldly substance known. They formed at the core-mantle boundary of an asteroid when some of the mantle’s olivine — proximal to the molten metallic core — crystallized and mixed with the molten metal. As a result of the asteroid having shattered following a collision with another asteroid, interior sections of the asteroid became liberated, with some finding their way to Earth. Admire pallasites are readily identified by large polycrystalline areas that cleaved into highly angular shards. While meteorites are among the rarest substances on Earth — all the world’s meteorites weigh less than the world’s annual output of gold — pallasites are much rarer still as they represent less than 0.2% of all known meteorites. Gem-quality olivine or peridot (the August birthstone) is found in some pallasites — including the current offering. The first two masses of the Admire pallasites were discovered while plowing a field in Lyon County, Kansas in 1881. More than a century later, enterprising meteorite hunters returned to the site, and after a lot more plowing…with a metal detector…additional samples of Admire were recovered.

Extraterrestrial olivine and peridot are suspended in a highly-polished iron-nickel matrix originating from an asteroid’s core. This complete slice of an Admire meteorite is delimited by the meteorite’s external surface. The large angular crystals in this specimen are a select example of Admire’s crystalline olivine signature. Modern cutting.

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


289 x 171 x 3mm (11.5 x 6.75 x 0.1 in.) and 530.9g (1.1 lbs)