[meteorite-list] Lake Eyre meteorite 'Crown property',

[ian macleod]

Hi Guys, as Mike G said its all good, Mike and I had a chat on facebook.


 When I first started collecting meteorites 5 years or so ago (not that long ago compared to many) I was very much pro free market, viva let us own anything and how dare the museums take my rock.


I attempted to change the hearts and minds of some here in Australia, maybe I didn't change any mind sets rather the image bestowed on me to believe that some scientists here were hard-ass (excuse my Ozzie) purists was changed when I got to know them. There was reasons for why things are the way they are, and they are quite reasonable or had merit.


After a short time I started to see the inconsistencies and lack of data coming out of the market side which is a scientific problem. I wont go into detail because I think most people are aware of the sellers or practices I alluded to previously. Its just the same old practices and issues that pop up from time to time. Provenance hand balling is what I call the situation where a seller uses the lame excuse they bought it from another trusted seller, so its not their fault that the meteorite they are selling isn't what they say it is. This is the big issue with small samples. Its easy to join the dots with the stuff that goes on with trading.


I agree with Dr Agee that the positives out weight the negatives as he pointed out in an article available on the IMCA website. Many traders can be trusted to various degrees. Where I think we might differ in opinion is on the degree to which this system of private incentive will play a role in the future, namely western countries. NWA and some larger falls will benefit from people being financially rewarded for finds and then some middle man re-selling after classification. Ok lets keep this going till NWA dries up and not much else is to be produced. I have no issue with this, it works for now. We have had some extremely cool work done like Black Beauty and others.  However I would like to see more and more (not all) meteorites avoid the private ownership arena all together......ok the dealers are hating me by now 


Creston is a example of where things went a bit pair shaped in my mind for science


USA had a private network of cameras setup that captured the fireball, a private individual and some others extracted that meteorite, the first piece(s) was then on sold. Finally it was sold for a ridiculous price. Not illegal or immoral......just not ideal



Will the general public ever see this and appreciate it? Stored in a private collection can be just as cruel as stored in a dusty museum box


Now in Australia, we do have an likely issue of finds being hidden ( old falls and cold finds) due to our state laws. however this material will just add to the 50,000 stones we need to know more about. Where these laws are a benefit is that when our DFN etc detects a fall, scientists (not private hunters looking for profit or cost recovery) will go out grab the stone and bring it back! No arguing or deals with farmers, no who owns what.....its shared, its pure, its for Australia as a whole. Not just for me, some rich collector or a foreign collection


We will know where it came from, where it landed, who found it, what it is and where it will stay exactly


With much more than just a classification but, rare orbit data - which is contributing greatly to mapping our solar system and more!


This is the 21st century meteoritics I hope for, this is what excites me and I dream for. 


Oh no I cant own a piece?....maybe or maybe not.....I dont care


We already have so much material floating around to trade and not enough customers to buy it. People are so numb to the tonnes of rocks we have, dealers have to have the latest lunar just to excite people.


Meteoritcs is more than just owning something or group funding some middle man, its the endless pursuit of science and truth and the friends we make along the way



We may not agree on everything but I count Carl and Mike as mates


Cheers


Ian