Posted by Dakota Stones on 2/3/2019 to Articles

* Please note: We are SOLD OUT of all muonionalusta meteorite strands and bead sets. We hope to get more strands in soon and will let you know as soon as we do!

The meteorite was first discovered in Sweden, nearly 100 miles north of the Arctic Circle, in 1906 by two children who stumbled over a metal object stuck in the ground. Later determined to be an iron meteorite, it was thought to have fallen approximately 800,000 years ago.



A meteorite is a portion of a meteoroid or asteroid that survives its passage through the atmosphere and hits the ground without being destroyed.



These rare Muonionalusta (pronounced /MOO-oh-ne-oh-nah-loo-stah/) meteorite impacted the Earth, shattering into many pieces, only 40 of which are known today. Smaller pieces of this meteorite have been found in the area, spread by the impact with the earth or moved through glacial changes. Since the meteorite collided with Earth it has experienced four ice ages!

When cut, the meteorite's inner structure becomes visible. Lines and layers, known as the Widmanstätten pattern, are an interweaving of kamacite (an alloy of iron and nickel) and taenite (a mineral found naturally in iron meteorites, also an alloy of iron and nickel) bands. This patterning is visible on our meteorite beads but on a smaller scale, of course.

Because of the high iron content these beads are surprisingly heavy -- much the way a meteorite is far heavier than a normal rock of the same size. Customers should also note that our meteorite beads are untreated and, because of their high iron content, they are subject to rust and oxidation over time. Needless to say, we have very limited stock of these meteorites!