King_Martini Posted April 11, 2007 Share Posted April 11, 2007 Found this last summer metal detecting: - It is very heavy/dense and very hard. - It is coated with aggregated chondrules - It has olivine seepage and olivine chondrules - It has gold deposits. They are soft and have not tarnished for over a year. *SEE NOTE* - It has various metal particles on the exterior. Some shiny and some rusted in appearance. - Some particles on the outside look like iron meteorites. - It is NOT MAGNETIC I wish I could get some macro shots but I don't have the camera to do it. I will say it is amazing under a 14x loupe. Any ideas on what it may be? I figured a few rock hounds out there may have some theories. *NOTE* I am quite positive the gold deposits are not pyrite. The deposits are much warmer in color and they are soft. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King_Martini Posted April 11, 2007 Author Share Posted April 11, 2007 Some macros using a magnifying glass. Best I could do. The first photo shows the colors in it very accurately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cosmopassion Posted April 11, 2007 Share Posted April 11, 2007 Some macros using a magnifying glass. Best I could do. The first photo shows the colors in it very accurately. Well, it appears not to have a smooth, or torn surface. In fact, it looks a bit rough. Additionally, you mentioned it doesnt attract a magnet. Now, if it does not attract a magnet, even the slightest bit, this combined with appearance points towards your object not being a meteorite. However my conclusion is not definitive. Perhaps you can cut it open, and polish it? It is very interesting nonetheless. Thanks for the post. :whoopie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King_Martini Posted April 11, 2007 Author Share Posted April 11, 2007 Thanks for the feedback but remember not all meteorites contain iron. I was thinking along the lines of "carbonaceous chondrite." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldfinger Posted April 11, 2007 Share Posted April 11, 2007 Hi Guys; My hunch is this is definitely not a meteorite. It seems to be some sort of metallic ore specimen like chalcopyrite but it's hard to tell because there's such a variety of different colored photos. Try and do a streak test on unglazed white porcelain. My guess is it will have a black streak. Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King_Martini Posted April 11, 2007 Author Share Posted April 11, 2007 Very odd I streaked it on ceramic and more "Gold" appeared... I took out the ol' dremel and a brush wheel and then cleaned it with my fingers and metal polish. A tiny piece came off and it is very malleable. I crimped the tiny piece with pliers and it took the form of the pliers teeth. Further test with my metal detector: The rock cuts out at the high end of where gold reads. A solid copper penny still reads at max discrimination whereas this rock does not. This rules out copper for me and last time I checked Pyrite was not malleable. I really want to do an acid test on this and test for carats. Jeweler not in till monday :( Pic attached. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cosmopassion Posted April 12, 2007 Share Posted April 12, 2007 Thanks for the feedback but remember not all meteorites contain iron. I was thinking along the lines of "carbonaceous chondrite." I see. Just remember, carbonaceous are quite rare. :ph34r2: Try a density test. If its density is near 19g/cm^3, or reletively close, you may have yourself a small fortune. Additionally, Gold along with a few other metals, are extremely malleable. However, I am sure you know that already. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Basaltgooroo Posted April 12, 2007 Share Posted April 12, 2007 It looks like a carbonatious ore from the San Juan mountains of colorado... except with more copper instead of silver. I doubt its a meteorite from its lack of magnetivity. what state did u find that in? [Erik] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King_Martini Posted April 12, 2007 Author Share Posted April 12, 2007 Found it in Northern PA Not sure what it is, but I am pretty sure it is not copper. Like I wrote earlier, This rock cuts out on a metal detector where gold cuts out. A solid copper penny reads at max discrimination whereas this rock does not. It appears that the dark coating with the chondrules was only a 1-2 millimeter coating over the whole rock. It is all metal inside. A quick $5 acid test at the jeweler will tell me if it is gold or not. If it is gold, I will be even further perplexed buy its structure. I will also mention that the rock still has these tiny and diverse chondrules "cemented" to the exterior of the metal. I am no rock expert but I would think that only heat and pressure could do such a thing. The metal is fluid in some areas and jagged in others. There are noticable linear lines in some areas of the metal. The rock is tear drop shaped and very smooth and curved at the widest point. ( <---like that. :P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pallasite alex Posted April 14, 2007 Share Posted April 14, 2007 i'm just a hobbyist but i'd agree with others that it's not a meteorite, at least not a chondrite. gold is associated with hydrothermal deposition from volcanoes and water, only a few meteorites-achrondites have been created as such-on planets with volcanic activity like mars, earth, moon, vesta..... so volcanic rocks shouldn't have chondrules in them. this is my theory/perspective, either that or maybe garimpo will be looking into borrowing the space shuttle. :woohoo: pallasite alex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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