High above our planet, chunks of metal swirl around the solar system in lonely orbits. Metallic asteroids number in the millions, but they're relatively quite rare—bits and pieces of lonely matter that never became planets. Occasionally, they find a home.
A tiny fraction of these dull, misshapen hunks of metal have rained onto our planet for millennia, sparking briefly alight as they kiss the atmosphere before biting deep into the planet's surface — if they aren't incinerated first.
An even smaller fraction make it to Earth and remain buried. Fewer still are brought to the surface by shovels, winches and ropes, or by the persistent combination of weather and time. And these cosmically rare finds can be valuable. A 1,400-pound chunk of meteorite was expected to fetch up to $1.2 million at auction at Christie's in 2016. Others listed during this year's sale stretched well into the five figures.
For collectors, meteorites represent a rarified conceit: a primordial bit of the heavens you can hold in your hand. And if the archaeological record is any indication, humans have been beguiled by space rocks for millennia. Meteorites, especially those made of metal, have been found in in shrines, tombs and burial grounds the world over. Fallen from the sky, made of a material stronger and harder than anything on Earth — it's little wonder they inspired such awe.
