A Henbury Meteoritic Masterpiece

Michael Farmer’s described this 6.7 kg Henbury as “a masterpiece” and the Christies’ curator called it “the best lot in the sale.” Opinions from the sales side, sure, but I like them!

I am reading Greg Brennecka’s new book Impact which covers the impact meteorites have had on human culture. “Meteoritic influences in religion and society are pervasive, in almost every corner of the world, ranging from modern Oceania, indigenous peoples of the Americas, to Estonian folklore” to the meteor-metal dagger in King Tut’s tomb.

Iron before the iron-age left many a mark. So did observed airbursts overhead and craters on the ground. Meteoritic beads have been found in burial sites going back 6,000 years. Australia is a rare exception, due most “likely to a superstitious view of all things meteoritic.”

“Is there a reason for the almost ubiquitous distrust of all things meteoritic from the Aboriginal population? The answer to this understandable stance might actually come from the personal experiences of the Aboriginal population with stuff falling from the sky. Multiple craters found in Australia are young enough to have been seen by the indigenous populations, and in one case, the Henbury crater field, it seems that the event was witnessed by the local population, possibly leading to warnings to hundreds of generations to come about the dangers of anything meteoritic.”

“Still to this day, many Aboriginal people will not camp within a few miles of the craters and refer to them as ‘sun walk fire devil rock,’ which seems like a reasonable name if your ancestors saw something flying out of the sky that destroyed an entire area.”

From Christies’ lot description:
“Exhibiting the classic dappled patina characteristic of the very best Henbury meteorites. Almost of the form of a Neolithic axe, with a highly textured surface and a multitude of ridges and flumes. An extremely aesthetic complete individual covered in small regmaglypts.

Henbury is one of the great meteorite showers on record. Following a multi-million-year sojourn through interplanetary space, the iron mass fell in Northern Territory, Australia about 4,700 years ago creating a field of 13 craters measuring up to 180 meters across and 15 meters deep. This crater field is considered a sacred site to the Arrernte Aboriginal people whose elders would not camp near the craters nor drink rainwater collected there, referring to them as “chindu china waru chingi yabu”, roughly translating to “sun walk fire devil rock”. Although the craters were discovered in 1899, the first meteorites were not identified until 1931 following reports of metal stones being used by Aboriginal Australians.

This complete specimen possesses the quintessential features of the best Henbury meteorites. The scalloped face of this specimen is bathed in a muted oxidized patina adorned with burnt-sienna highlights—the result of the Australian desert having chemically bonded to the meteorite’s surface. Henbury is a member of the largest chemical group (IIIAB) of iron meteorites and originated from an asteroid that was shattered by a major collision about 650 million years ago. This is a select, notable example of this famous meteorite.”

240 mm x 190 mm x 90 mm (9.5” x 7.5” x 3.5”), 6.7 kg