Details
The small complete individual with four slices.
34 in. (2.1cm.) long
5g.
Literature
Agee, C.B., et al. (2013), “Unique Meteorite from Early Amazonian Mars: Water-Rich Basaltic Breccia Northwest Africa 7034.” Science, 339(6121), 780-785.
Humayun, M. (2013), “A Unique Piece of Mars.” Science, 339(6121), 771-772.
Special notice
Specified lots are being stored at Crozier Park Royal (details below) or will be removed from Christie’s, 8 King Street, London, SW1Y 6QT by 5.00pm on the day of the sale. Christie’s will inform you if the lot has been sent offsite. If the lot has been transferred to Crozier Park Royal, it will be available for collection from 12.00pm on the second business day following the sale. Please call Christie’s Client Service 24 hours in advance to book a collection time at Crozier Park Royal. All collections from Crozier Park Royal will be by pre-booked appointment only. Tel: +44 (0)20 7839 9060 Email: cscollectionsuk@christies.com. If the lot remains at Christie’s, 8 King Street, it will be available for collection on any working day (not weekends) from 9.00am to 5.00pm
This lot has been imported from outside of the UK for sale and placed under the Temporary Admission regime. Import VAT is payable at 5% on the hammer price. VAT at 20% will be added to the buyer’s premium but will not be shown separately on our invoice.
Please note this lot is the property of a consumer. See H1 of the Conditions of Sale.
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Lot Essay

“Black Beauty” is the nickname given to a unique, shiny black Martian meteorite recovered in the Sahara in 2011 along with other related specimens launched off of Mars at the same time. The formal name of the meteorite is Northwest Africa (NWA) 7034. Martian meteorites are among the rarest substances on Earth; less than 0.3% of known meteorites are from Mars and Black Beauty is rarer still: it is the second oldest Martian meteorite, having crystallized from a magma more than two billion years ago. It contains relatively large crystals of the minerals plagioclase (a calcium-aluminum silicate) and pyroxene (a calcium-magnesium-iron silicate); these grains grew slowly as the magma cooled deep beneath the surface of Mars. The large mineral grains are surrounded by fine-grained material that formed from a quickly cooled magmatic liquid, probably during a volcanic eruption. Rock and mineral fragments were incorporated into the liquid during the eruption, giving the rock a brecciated (i.e. fragmental) appearance. Black Beauty is also unusual in that it contains 10-30 times more chemically bound water than other Martian meteorites, probably a result of the water-rich magma from which it crystallized.

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