Hello everyone. I have a couple questions about a 'rock' my husband found...

First, the history: For many years my husband's had this blackish rock sitting on a shelf in his office with a bunch of other mementos. The other day I asked him why in the heck he keeps hanging onto the rock and he said, 'I think it's a meteorite'. Now, what he knows about meteorites is about as much as he knows about how to build a spaceship but he said a geologist friend told him that's what it looked like. Probably over a few beers.

12-15 years ago, he doesn't really remember, he was at a garage/ estate sale and the rock was holding down some papers from blowing away. He liked the shape and jokingly asked the seller if he could buy it. She said yes and just gave it to him along with all the other junk, er, highly valuable collectibles he was buying.

I did some research online and hacked away a small fragment of the rock, noting the grayish color inside, blackened crust outside. I realize that doesn't prove anything but maybe it's worth a look.

QUESTION 1: What institution do you recommend, preferably here in Denver, to analyze and see if it even is a meteorite?

QUESTION 2: Are there laws about people owning meteorites? I found your website by following a thread about laws preventing people from keeping things they find, etc. Does that apply to garage sales?? (haha)

Thanks for your help!

Welcome Momo,
Pics would help tremendously. We have some Meteorite experts here on the site. The fact that you were able to "break" a piece off doesn't sound right if it's the real thing but that doesn't discount it either.
Would love to see some pics!

Thanks for your response. Just FYI there were some semi-fractured areas on the backside that I was able to get an edge of screwdriver into, then tapped pretty strongly with a hammer. Hopefully the last photo shows the area that was chipped away on the edge.

Click to view attachment
Click to view attachment
Click to view attachment

Does a magnet stick to it?

Nope. No reaction to a hanging magnet whatsoever. I also did the scraping test against the back of a ceramic tile and it left zero mark. Any other home tests you'd recommend? As prior stated, I'm just looking things up online to try-- thanks for your response.

I'm no expert, but from what I know, I'd say the magnet test pretty much says it's not.

Some interesting info here: http://epswww.unm.edu/iom/ident/

Honestly, it looks like dolomite or something similar to me. However - I am far from being an expert on minerals - it just looks like what I have a lot of on my property out here. It could also be limestone that was in a fire pit. Drop some vinegar or CLR on it - if it bubbles, there's calcium in it. That will confirm whether or not it is a calcium based rock at the very least.

Thanks for the suggestion, I tried the vinegar and there was no reaction. Would it be instant or does it need to sit on there for a while? As to its lack of magnetism, I read that a small number of meteorites can actually be non-magnetic... 'achondrites'? To me it also looks like photos of regular basaltic rock, the type with no vesicles. The mystery continues...

Acetic acid (vinegar) reacts with calcium almost immediately, so - no reaction, no calcium. To me - the rock looks like it has been in a fire pit or fire place, or a burn pile, etc. (which would account for what looks like "scaling") - not like basalt (way to grey where you chipped it). Take it to a rock shop for a more thorough examination than you can get online. Good luck!

Hello All,
If I may Momof2, I suggest you save the cost of having the sample tested. Unless an interested party will do it for free. I am fairly certain that specimen is a sample of Quartzite. This rock is formed when Quartz and sandstone are super heated and metamorphosed into a combination of the two, Wall-La Quartzite! Quartzite can come in a wide Varity of color. This one seems to have a greenish tint to it. The mechanics of the process is the same but adding small amounts of other minerals in the melting process will alter the color slightly and often change the product entirely. As for the darker, “burnt” edges, well that could be exactly what it is. Burnt! The result of close proximity to heat. That darker edge can also come from contact with iron rich minerals, such as Limonite.
Here is a sample pic of common Quartzite. Do some research and see if your sample closely matches these characteristics. Hope this helps, Woody.

The population of non-magnetic meteorites is statistically so small that it is unlikely that the specimen is one of those. Even if it is a meteorite, to have any real market value, it must have a location where it was collected and classification to establish what type it is. From what I've seen so far, it looks like a country rock and the market value probably wouldn't cover the testing costs.

If you really want to know if the object is a meteorite, then I'd suggest you hire Actlabs to run a sample through their analysis code 4 Litho-Meteorite.

ASTROBLEME

Thanks, Woody, that sounds totally right! Sure do appreciate your expertise.

Ha, no I believe you guys on here, there is NO WAY I'd let hubby spend a dime on his rock! This was great to hear from all you folks who actually know something about this, I really appreciate all the help