Unclassified NWA Stony Iron Meteorite 10g

This listing is for one amazing specimen of a North West Africa Stony Iron Meteorite (Mesosiderite) which is sold as seen (E). 

Dimensions: approx. 3cms x 1.9cms x 0.9cms
Weight: 10g
Description: An elongated, sleek individual piece, reaching a full 3cm in length, it has a beautiful sculptural quality that showcases the raw, violent fracturing caused when its parent asteroid shattered.

This raw dense specimen displays a highly textured, dark desert patina, peppered with heavy cosmic metals. It is also highly magnetic (due to the dense network of iron-nickel running through the stone).

Geology & History: This is a genuine Mesosiderite, a highly coveted class of stony-iron meteorite representing less than 2% of all meteorites found on Earth, recovered from the arid sands of Northwest Africa (NWA). The word mesosiderite comes from the Greek words for "half" and "iron." They are chaotic, dramatic cosmic mixtures containing roughly 50% shiny nickel-iron alloy and 50% silicate rock.

Approximately 4.5 billion years ago, a massive cosmic impact occurred in the asteroid belt. A liquid-metal asteroid core slammed into the rocky crust of a larger planetary body (likely the asteroid 4 Vesta), splashing molten iron into the shattered crustal rock. The result is a stunning "breccia" composed of roughly equal parts metallic nickel-iron and planetary silicates.