A SIKHOTE-ALIN METEORITE,

A SIKHOTE-ALIN METEORITE
FELL IN SIBERIA, 12 FEBRUARY 12 1947
One face is covered with the regmaglypts, evidencing the surficial melting that occurred during the meteorite’s descent through the Earth’s atmosphere. The regmaglypts, however, are unusually large for a specimen this size which implies that this individual broke off a larger mass. Indeed, the reverse reveals that this meteorite ripped apart as a result of the monumental forces exerted on its mass. As the surface is not as jagged as one would expect on freshly shorn metal, but somewhat smooth, this specimen continued to melt as a result of atmospheric friction. Ablation lipping seen on edges of the ripped face provide further evidence of this process. Afterwards, the meteorite achieved terminal velocity and free fall. Draped in a gunmetal patina, this sample also features a rarity: a natural hole as a further manifestation of its rough ride. This meteorite is testament to the monumental forces exerted on an object traveling at cosmic velocity prior to punching though Earth’s atmosphere.
3¼ x 2½ x 2in. (8.7 x 6.7 x 5.3cm.)
605g

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Lot Essay

Sikhote-Alin Meteorite—From the Largest Meteorite Shower in Human History

The Sikhote-Alin event was the largest meteorite shower in recorded history. After breaking off from its parent asteroid 320 million years ago, a 70-metric-ton iron mass wandered through interplanetary space until encountering Earth on 12 February 1947. A fireball brighter than the Sun (it created moving shadows in broad daylight) was seen to explode at an altitude of about 6 km over eastern Siberia. Sonic booms were heard at distances up to 300 km from the point of impact. Chimneys collapsed, windows shattered and trees were uprooted. A 33-km-long smoke trail persisted for several hours in the atmosphere after impact. Iron fragments were scattered over a broad elliptical area. Many of the fragments penetrated the soil, producing impact craters as large as 26 meters; about 200 such depressions have been catalogued. A famous painting of the event by artist and eye-witness P. I. Medvedev was reproduced as a postage stamp issued by the Soviet government in 1957 to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the meteorite fall.
There are two types of Sikhote-Alin meteorites: jagged and twisted shrapnel-like specimens (the result of the aforementioned low-altitude explosion of the main mass), and the smooth, gently scalloped specimens (which broke free at a much higher altitude and had an opportunity to ablate and form the aerodynamic thumb prints known as “regmaglypts”). In contrast to lot 15 this specimen is the latter variety.

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 note