Campo del Cielo Meteorite Cube // 2.23 Lb.

It is rare to see pieces that utilize the beauty of iron nickel etching as it appears in the Campo del Cielo meteorite. Campos are more often left whole for a more sculptural appearance. This unique and mesmerizing art piece displays a cut and polished Campo del Cielo meteorite in the form of a large cube. The Campo del Cielo iron meteorites were discovered in 1576 about 500 miles northwest of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Testing proved the "rocks" to be meteorites. It is estimated that the meteorites fell 4,000-6,000 years ago at Campo del Cielo (meaning field of sky or heaven) in Gran Chaco, Gualambia, giving credence to the fact that this was a meteorite fall (witnessed by man when falling to the earth) rather than a find, especially since larger pieces were discovered in and around a series of small craters in a field. Twelve very large craters have been found by searchers. The largest Campo meteorite weighs about 30 tons; understandably, it is one of Argentina's national treasures. This meteorite is classed as a coarse octahedrite. The composition is about 94% iron and 6% nickel. A number of scarce minerals are present as well, including kamacite, taenite, plessite, triolite, graphite, and silicates. Campo meteorites are well known for their silicate inclusions and are estimated to date back 4.6 billion years.