[meteorite-list] conflicting viewpoints

From: Melinda Hutson <mhutson_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Sun Aug 13 16:37:23 2006
Message-ID: <1155501403.44df8d5b5a136_at_webmail.pdx.edu>

This is in response to the posting ?Stop thieves! Meteorite marauders of
Norway!? by Michael Mazur. In his posting, Mr. Mazur says ?There aren't many
of us but I'd like to think that we're not thieves who don't care about
science as is implied by the article. If you disagree with Elen's proposal,
maybe a gentle note explaining how you think meteorite collectors and dealers
can and do help science would be a good idea.?

I am a scientist, not a collector or a dealer, and I see a bit of both sides of
this issue. It is true that many meteorites have been found by dealers/hunters
that would have just sat on the ground otherwise, as scientists do not go out
into the field to search for meteorites (with the exception of Antarctica). It
is also true that in general, a type specimen of each meteorite is deposited in
a repository during classification, making this material available to
scientists for research. I say ?in general?, because some of the repositories
are private collections and it is not clear that this material will be
available to scientists in the future.

So why aren?t scientists jumping up and down in happiness. Well, for one thing,
not all of the material that is found will ever be seen by a scientist. A lot
of meteorites are being sold without being classified. I?ve received more than
one request from a person who bought a meteorite off of e-bay with a provisional
NWA number, who wants their sample classified. As these are whole stones, with
no material missing, it is clear that someone requested a provisional number,
just for the purpose of being able to sell a ?named meteorite?. Some of these
may not even be meteorites. Additionally, scientists aren?t happy about the
current system because some of the dealers/collectors have been known to lie
about important information (such as when and where a sample was collected).
Also, most public repositories (museums and universities) don?t have funds to
purchase samples, and so cannot compete with dealers when a fresh fall occurs.
It is important to study fresh falls quickly, before they?ve experienced
significant terrestrial weathering. While some dealers/collectors are very
generous about donating substantial amounts of material to an institution for
study, others are very reluctant to give even the minimum 20 grams require by
the Nomenclature Committee. For large-scale breccias (think Portales Valley),
a 20 gram sample gives a very misleading view of the entire meteorite. Also,
as many analytical techniques are destructive; if only 20 grams is available to
scientists (who can?t afford to buy samples), then that sample is unlikely to be
thoroughly studied.

Finally, private collections can be lost when the collector dies. I recently
had someone come in with a fist-sized piece of Canyon Diablo that they had
bought for $3 at a garage sale. It had no information ? the people selling the
meteorite weren?t even aware that it was a meteorite. It had obviously come
from someone?s collection. Also, recently a private collector here in Oregon
died unexpectedly, without leaving a will. He was a bachelor with no close
relatives. One of the dealers from whom he had purchased meteorites was aware
that the man had wanted to leave his collection to a museum. Distant relatives
called me in to help identify samples. The samples had gotten jumbled and
separated from the labels, I suspect when the relatives were looking through
the samples. The collector had a catalog (without photographs), and we were
able to match most of the samples to the descriptions in the catalog, although
a handful of samples remained unidentified. The collector?s relatives then
sold off all of the material. They may or may not have included correct
information with the samples.

So, I suspect that unless ALL dealers become more generous with the amount of
samples they donate (particularly for falls ? to local institutions), they will
find that more and more countries are going to place restrictions on the ability
of dealers/hunters to purchase or collect samples. Unfortunately, it only takes
one or two ?bad apples? to give all dealers a bad reputation.

And if you are a collector who values your collection and doesn?t want to see
your material broken or sliced up and sold on e-bay, then you should write a
will, directing what should happen to your collection when you die. If you
intend to leave your material to an institution, you should leave a copy of
your will with someone (curator?) at that institution. And you shouldn?t wait.
 While we would all like to die of old age, accidents happen.


Melinda Hutson, curator
Cascadia Meteorite Laboratory
Portland State University
Department of Geology
17 Cramer Hall, 1721 SW Broadway
Portland OR 97207-0751
Phone: 503-725-3372
Fax: 503-725-3025
Received on Sun 13 Aug 2006 04:36:43 PM PDT