Lot 71A
Africa, Namibia, fall dates to prehistoric times, meteorite discovered by Captain J.E. Alexander, ca. 1838 CE; North America, Western United States, Mesozoic era, ca. 252 to 66 million years ago. A remarkable knife with a meteorite blade and a fossilized dinosaur bone handle. The fragment of meteorite is cut to reveal the gorgeous iron-nickel graining within - note that the entire tang covered by the handle is also meteorite. The handle panels are carved from "red-cell" dinosaur bone - the bone not just fossilizing into stone but into colorful agate. One side of the blade is stamped with a "crusader" emblem for an unidentified maker. Included with the knife is a thick leather holster. Size of knife: 10" L x 1.5" W (25.4 cm x 3.8 cm); blade: 5" L x 1.25" W (12.7 cm x 3.2 cm); sheath: 10.5" L x 2.25" W (26.7 cm x 5.7 cm)
Forging meteorites is notoriously difficult, and is an uncommon material to work with. Extraterrestrial iron was used by ancient cultures and revered as pieces from the cosmos and usually forged into ceremonial pieces; indeed a meteorite blade was discovered in the tomb of the Egyptian Pharaoh Tutankhamun. The Gibeon meteorite is so called due to its impact in Namibia, near the city of Gibeon, in prehistoric times. The Nama people collected the pieces from the meteorite-strewn field for generations, long before the "discovery" and identification of the meteorite in 1838.
Provenance: ex-private Hagar collection, Wildwood, Missouri, USA
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#181532
- Condition: Pre-owned condition. Natural pitting and striations to meteorite. Minor wear and abrasions to bone handle.
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