[meteorite-list] Bogus indochinites? Are they or aren't they?

From: drtanuki <drtanuki_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Fri, 13 Feb 2009 04:14:34 -0800 (PST)
Message-ID: <191654.36308.qm_at_web53201.mail.re2.yahoo.com>

Dear Mark and List,
  You are correct that it is unlikely that tektites are faked, 99.99% BUT NOT 100%. Rare types such as buttons etc., rare types or rare localities perhaps would be the most likely target because of profit vs effort.

  I have seen ONE intentionally faked tektite in the Philippines in the Late Dr. Beyer`s collection from the 1930~40s (labeled as 'fake'- it was two real tektites that had been affixed together with asphalt to form a very unusual shape).

  Moldavite faked- see ebay and check especially China, Hong Kong sellers.
 "Faked" (mis-represented or mis-identified) Libyan glass...we saw it before from China.

  It is NOT uncommon to see slag substituted as Indochinite.

 In my opinion "Indochinite" is not a good name as it allows for such a large area and they may not all be from the same source impact crater or same impact event. We have yet to find a source crater or craters!

  I am also of the opinion that there were multiple impacts at the time of their formation and the term "Indochinite" is a term left for orphaned tektites that the find location is no longer known or the person obtaining them bought them from persons unwilling to give the find location for financial reasons OR the seller just did not know and assumed that the location was what the local seller said.

  For example, in Thailand, Vietnam, Hong Kong and especially China there are many tektites that are sold as being from China or Thailand when in fact they were imported from Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and even the Philippines).
 
  In Bangkok, and elsewhere, many of the sellers (merchants) have never been to the field and rely on their contacts (suppliers) to obtain them. True information (fact) in Asia, and in most of the real world, comes at a cost and it does not pay the merchant to advertise for his competitors or customers the location of his source.

  I personally will not willingly give the exact location for the tektites that I have collected to amateurs or "dealers" so that they can further enhance their profits and further deplete scientifically valuable find information.

  I will give accurate information as to country and Provence (IF I am 100% certain only) and that I have seen for myself and collected myself from the location (without the help of "guides" that steer you to their "find site" for a profit.
  I do give accurate find location to scientists and other researchers that have a reason to know the accurate GPS locations for the tektites that I have found myself or persons that I know have found while with me in the field.

 I have seen faked find sites in Asia for tektites and am sure as long as there is a profit some humans will seek to profit from misinformation.

  Bogus tektites are usuallsubstituteded slag, black rocks or augite that have been intentionally added or were found in the field by the locals. In some cases some local sellers "specialize" in slag tektites and their customers have no idea what a tektite should look like. In China, I was shown slag by several dealers- it is not that they were perhaps intenionally trying to cheat me- perhaps they had never seen a tektite and they were sold the material as a tektite. Other cases the dealer knows exactly that he is selling slag and it is up to the buyer to buy or not. Buyer beware!

  Enough of my ramblings; time for sleep after more than a day of being awake. IF someone wishes to discuss this topic further contact me off list. I am sure Norman can also comment on his experiences IF he is computer-available in Africa.

Best regards, Dirk Ross...Tokyo

BTW: Thank you to all the the some 35 persons that contacted me about buying tektites in the past 13+ hours; special thanks to the 25+ list members that bought! There are still several kilos left if anyone is interested.
  

 

--- On Fri, 2/13/09, Mark Ford <mark.ford at ssl.gb.com> wrote:

> From: Mark Ford <mark.ford at ssl.gb.com>
> Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Bogus indochinites? Are they or aren't they?
> To: meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
> Date: Friday, February 13, 2009, 8:09 PM
> I don't think assuming 'no one would bother faking
> something' is the
> same as meaning they never will, or that something else is
> consiquentaly
> genuine because of the low likely hood.
>
> This is like applying the same logic that some doctors use,
> when they
> say 'you don't have X wrong with you because its
> 'very unlikely'
>
> The market for indochinites world wide is colossal there
> are thousands
> and thousands of gem shops world wide to sell to, believe
> me they [do]
> fake tektites, and I doubt most everyday people would even
> know the
> difference, if they can make a ton of tektites for a few
> dollars then it
> is worth it. Recycled glass is very cheap...
>
> Anyway not wishing to cause panic here, I'm fairly
> confident 99%+ of
> tektites are perfectly ok, just be careful buying from
> people you don't
> know about is all.
>
>
Received on Fri 13 Feb 2009 07:14:34 AM PST