4 billion-year-old meteorite to be auctioned with guide price of £19,000

At first sight, the object looks like a large rock, but is in fact an iron meteorite of the type of octahedral rite, from the world-renowned Muonionalusta meteorites collection. 

 

The chunk of space comes from a town in Pajalam Norrbotten, Sweden, where the meteorite was discovered in the early 20th century. 

 

Claes Hain, Country Manager for Catawiki in the Nordic region, said: "Holding this kind of auction is great fun for Catawiki. The meteorite is, after all, a bit of Swedish space history. The question is, whether the person who buys it is from Sweden or whether the Meteorite will have to be transported to somewhere else in the world."  

Other existing Meteorites are housed in well-known museums around the world, but few of these are as large and expensive as the heavyweight going under the hammer. The meteorite weighs a full 26.5 kilos and besides the rarity of item itself, the buyer also receives a certificate that guarantees the authenticity. 

 

The auction ends on 22 October 2018 at 8pm and can be viewed at Catawiki.

 

• Every day hundreds of tons of matter fall to the earth, but meteorites land in Sweden once every two years
• Witnessing a meteorite fall is incredibly rare, annually only 3-4 occasions are reported around the world
• The prices of meteorites vary depending on size and variety, but overall, the space stones are considered a good investment. Among the more expensive, the price per gram is estimated to be as much as 40 times more than the corresponding price of gold