4 ms·

Watch carved from meteorite that hit Earth a million years ago

41 points by cratermoon 2y ago

adolph 2y ago
“You often see meteorite dials; they are not uncommon on watches,” Toledano told CNN via Zoom from New York, where he is based. “But an entire meteorite case, dial, lugs — all that stuff — is very unusual.” The design is oriented around the meterorite's iron: Widmanstätten patterns, also known as Thomson structures, are figures of long phases of nickel–iron, found in the octahedrite shapes of iron meteorite crystals and some pallasites. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widmanst%C3%A4tten_pattern https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widmanst%C3%A4tten_pattern
- senectus1 2y ago
  My wedding band has a meteorite ring component. The owner of that watch is going to have a heavy lump that rusts on his wrist lol. pretty cool though.
wantlotsofcurry 2y ago
"The prototype watch is estimated to fetch between $8,000 and $16,000 when it appears at the Time for Art auction, organized by Phillips Watches, in New York on Saturday." $8-16 thousand does not seem that high of a price for this... Especially when compared to the prices other high end watches fetch.
- echelon 2y ago
  I was going to say, where's the "buy it now" button?
  - wahnfrieden 2y ago
    It went for something like $35k at auction already some days ago
- greggsy 2y ago
  I’m skeptical that this is a high end watch. It’s collectable, sure, but they make no mention of the movement, and at that price I’m going to assume it’s nothing special, and that majority of the price has gone into the case and face. Personally, I think it’s ugly, and reminiscent of 80’s black marble bathrooms.
gaadd33 2y ago
Sold for $35.5k last weekend: https://www.phillips.com/detail/toledano-chan/NY080424/103 https://www.phillips.com/detail/toledano-chan/NY080424/103
jterrys 2y ago
...why did they have to make it so ugly?
- bugtodiffer 2y ago
  to be different
Aloisius 2y ago
> Toledano declined to disclose how much the fragment used for the B/1M cost, but he noted that raw meteorite can sell for more, per gram, than gold Sure. Lunar, martian, rare types and some especially pretty pallasites. Iron-nickel meteorites? I'd be shocked if they spent more than $10/gram, especially if they're declining to state the name of the meteorite.
- onionisafruit 2y ago
  The article says Muonionalusta. I’m no meteorologist though. Maybe that isnt the name of the meteorite.
  - Aloisius 2y ago
    I missed that. Muonionalusta is definitely a meteorite. It's maybe $2-3/gram.
xvector 2y ago
I own a few bespoke meteorite artpieces and my biggest concern with something like this is the smell! Muonionalusta meteorite in my experience has this pungent, sulfur-like smell. I see nothing about the movement and suspect it's an off-the-shelf quartz or ETA movement. If you're looking for a true "high-horology" watch with a meteorite dial, that also has stunning movement finishing, check out Grönefeld: https://www.gronefeld.com/news/from-oldenzaal-to-manhattan---/ https://www.gronefeld.com/news/from-oldenzaal-to-manhattan--... What is movement finishing? - https://monochrome-watches.com/a-technical-perspective-all-you-want-to-know-about-finishing-in-haute-horlogerie/ https://monochrome-watches.com/a-technical-perspective-all-y...
- kilbuz 2y ago
  wait do you have one of the 12 Cellini Principias?
- WillPostForFood 2y ago
  Sellita SW100
  - xvector 2y ago
    For $32k? Yikes! That's like a $150 mass-produced movement.
antiquark 2y ago
That grid-like crystalline pattern can't be produced in a lab. It's only present in metals that cool by 1 celsius every thousand years. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widmanst%C3%A4tten_pattern https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widmanst%C3%A4tten_pattern
- ajross 2y ago
  Uplifted mantle rocks will absolutely cool that slowly. What makes the iron crystals special is that the Earth's mantle and crust is swimming in oxygen so you don't see crystalline metals like that at all.
- ipsum2 2y ago
  It probably could be produced in a lab if it had practical applications.
- alphan0n 2y ago
  >IRON METEORITE WIDMANSTATTEN PATTERN PRODUCED IN THE LABORATORY Joseph I. Goldstein, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pa. Arthur S. Doan, Jr., Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt >Pub date: 1970 https://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu/pdf/1970Metic...5..201G https://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu/pdf/1970Metic...5..201G
- wruza 2y ago
  The formation of Ni-poor kamacite proceeds by diffusion of Ni in the solid alloy at temperatures between 450 and 700 °C, and can only take place during very slow cooling, about 100 to 10,000 °C/Myr, with total cooling times of 10 Myr or less.[13] This explains why this structure cannot be reproduced in the laboratory. Hmm, [13] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0009281909000038?via%3Dihub https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S00092... The wide range of cooling rates for IVA irons and their inverse correlation with bulk Ni concentration show that they crystallized and cooled not in a mantled core but in a large metallic body of radius 150±50 km with scarcely any silicate insulation. This body may have formed in a grazing protoplanetary impact. Uhm, There is a growing consensus that most iron meteorites come from bodies that accreted early – even before the parent bodies of the chondrites – and that 26Al, which has a half-life of 0.7 Myr, is the major heat source that melted them. What? If I understand correctly, it was a large 150km metal blob full of radioactive alumin(iu)m that controlled the crystallization process over millions of years. Now that’s hardcore metal.
thih9 2y ago
Interestingly, the same meteorite “Muonionalusta”[1] has been used in other watches, e.g. Bulova Lunar Pilot Meteorite[2] or Akva Meteorite[3]. You too can buy a piece of that meteorite: https://www.meteoritejewelry.shop/collections/muonionalusta-sweden-1 https://www.meteoritejewelry.shop/collections/muonionalusta-... [1]: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muonionalusta https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muonionalusta [2]: https://www.bulova.com/global/product/96A312.html?cgid=lunar-pilot https://www.bulova.com/global/product/96A312.html?cgid=lunar... [3]: https://henryarcher.com/en-eu/products/akva-atlas https://henryarcher.com/en-eu/products/akva-atlas
- freetime2 2y ago
  Wow that's surprisingly inexpensive (to me at least who has never looked into the value of meteorites before), with some pieces even costing less than €100 EUR. Now I'm trying to come up with a reason why I shouldn't buy a piece.
  - thih9 2y ago
    Cons: you might be able to get it for even cheaper from a non-jeweler seller; also, meteorites like this need to be handled with care to avoid rust[1]. [1]: http://midnightsunmeteorites.com/en/muonionalusta-meteorite-care.html http://midnightsunmeteorites.com/en/muonionalusta-meteorite-...
indulona 2y ago
meteorite watches are nothing unusual, exotic or expensive. there are also watches made from former soviet soviet space program debris(rockets) so you have a piece of metal that went into space(orbit) and back. i do not recall the name of the brand but it was very inexpensive and quite cool.
relistan 2y ago
Too bad it’s so unfortunate looking
eps 2y ago
Niwa's Lunokhods each have a piece of the same meteorite in them (Muonionalusta). If you ever wanted a lamp watch with a meteorite, here's your chance :) https://niwa.watch/collections/niwa-lunokhod-watches https://niwa.watch/collections/niwa-lunokhod-watches
KaiserPro 2y ago
Meteorite dials are quite common. Meteorite cases are rarer because they are not overly practical. They rust, unless treated, and even then the coating isn't impervious. Still its nice to see a "rolex midas" style watch back on the market. The big watch people (omega, rolex, and the other brands owned by LVMH) are a bit conservative in styles, so its nice to see something different, if brutalist. David Rutten made a brilliant 1920s style case https://www.watchprosite.com/horological-meandering/hands-on-review-of-the-david-rutten-dr-01-streamline/17.1314471.11282226/ https://www.watchprosite.com/horological-meandering/hands-on... They have gone through some changes and are now https://www.ukrony.com/ https://www.ukrony.com/
- shrx 2y ago
  Might be a nitpick, but is everyone OK with just taking the photos with a mobile phone nowadays, even for such product photography? They look terrible when viewed on a computer screen.
  - KaiserPro 2y ago
    I think watchpro is more of a fan forum, rather than a product selling site. If you follow watch types on instagram the level of quality of photography is generally quite high.
  - thrance 2y ago
    Maybe most people browse these sites from mobile devices,and that's why the photos are taken this way?
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]
m0llusk 2y ago
We're doing trendy luxury goods now? Really?

41 points by cratermoon 2y ago

“You often see meteorite dials; they are not uncommon on watches,” Toledano told CNN via Zoom from New York, where he is based. “But an entire meteorite case, dial, lugs — all that stuff — is very unusual.” The design is oriented around the meterorite's iron: Widmanstätten patterns, also known as Thomson structures, are figures of long phases of nickel–iron, found in the octahedrite shapes of iron meteorite crystals and some pallasites. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widmanst%C3%A4tten_pattern https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widmanst%C3%A4tten_pattern

senectus1 2y ago
My wedding band has a meteorite ring component. The owner of that watch is going to have a heavy lump that rusts on his wrist lol. pretty cool though.

wantlotsofcurry 2y ago

"The prototype watch is estimated to fetch between $8,000 and $16,000 when it appears at the Time for Art auction, organized by Phillips Watches, in New York on Saturday." $8-16 thousand does not seem that high of a price for this... Especially when compared to the prices other high end watches fetch.

echelon 2y ago
I was going to say, where's the "buy it now" button?
- wahnfrieden 2y ago
  It went for something like $35k at auction already some days ago
greggsy 2y ago
I’m skeptical that this is a high end watch. It’s collectable, sure, but they make no mention of the movement, and at that price I’m going to assume it’s nothing special, and that majority of the price has gone into the case and face. Personally, I think it’s ugly, and reminiscent of 80’s black marble bathrooms.

gaadd33 2y ago

Sold for $35.5k last weekend: https://www.phillips.com/detail/toledano-chan/NY080424/103 https://www.phillips.com/detail/toledano-chan/NY080424/103

jterrys 2y ago

...why did they have to make it so ugly?

bugtodiffer 2y ago
to be different

Aloisius 2y ago

> Toledano declined to disclose how much the fragment used for the B/1M cost, but he noted that raw meteorite can sell for more, per gram, than gold Sure. Lunar, martian, rare types and some especially pretty pallasites. Iron-nickel meteorites? I'd be shocked if they spent more than $10/gram, especially if they're declining to state the name of the meteorite.

onionisafruit 2y ago
The article says Muonionalusta. I’m no meteorologist though. Maybe that isnt the name of the meteorite.
- Aloisius 2y ago
  I missed that. Muonionalusta is definitely a meteorite. It's maybe $2-3/gram.

xvector 2y ago

I own a few bespoke meteorite artpieces and my biggest concern with something like this is the smell! Muonionalusta meteorite in my experience has this pungent, sulfur-like smell. I see nothing about the movement and suspect it's an off-the-shelf quartz or ETA movement. If you're looking for a true "high-horology" watch with a meteorite dial, that also has stunning movement finishing, check out Grönefeld: https://www.gronefeld.com/news/from-oldenzaal-to-manhattan---/ https://www.gronefeld.com/news/from-oldenzaal-to-manhattan--... What is movement finishing? - https://monochrome-watches.com/a-technical-perspective-all-you-want-to-know-about-finishing-in-haute-horlogerie/ https://monochrome-watches.com/a-technical-perspective-all-y...

kilbuz 2y ago
wait do you have one of the 12 Cellini Principias?
WillPostForFood 2y ago
Sellita SW100
- xvector 2y ago
  For $32k? Yikes! That's like a $150 mass-produced movement.

antiquark 2y ago

That grid-like crystalline pattern can't be produced in a lab. It's only present in metals that cool by 1 celsius every thousand years. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widmanst%C3%A4tten_pattern https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widmanst%C3%A4tten_pattern

ajross 2y ago
Uplifted mantle rocks will absolutely cool that slowly. What makes the iron crystals special is that the Earth's mantle and crust is swimming in oxygen so you don't see crystalline metals like that at all.
ipsum2 2y ago
It probably could be produced in a lab if it had practical applications.
alphan0n 2y ago
>IRON METEORITE WIDMANSTATTEN PATTERN PRODUCED IN THE LABORATORY Joseph I. Goldstein, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pa. Arthur S. Doan, Jr., Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt >Pub date: 1970 https://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu/pdf/1970Metic...5..201G https://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu/pdf/1970Metic...5..201G
wruza 2y ago
The formation of Ni-poor kamacite proceeds by diffusion of Ni in the solid alloy at temperatures between 450 and 700 °C, and can only take place during very slow cooling, about 100 to 10,000 °C/Myr, with total cooling times of 10 Myr or less.[13] This explains why this structure cannot be reproduced in the laboratory. Hmm, [13] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0009281909000038?via%3Dihub https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S00092... The wide range of cooling rates for IVA irons and their inverse correlation with bulk Ni concentration show that they crystallized and cooled not in a mantled core but in a large metallic body of radius 150±50 km with scarcely any silicate insulation. This body may have formed in a grazing protoplanetary impact. Uhm, There is a growing consensus that most iron meteorites come from bodies that accreted early – even before the parent bodies of the chondrites – and that 26Al, which has a half-life of 0.7 Myr, is the major heat source that melted them. What? If I understand correctly, it was a large 150km metal blob full of radioactive alumin(iu)m that controlled the crystallization process over millions of years. Now that’s hardcore metal.

thih9 2y ago

Interestingly, the same meteorite “Muonionalusta”[1] has been used in other watches, e.g. Bulova Lunar Pilot Meteorite[2] or Akva Meteorite[3]. You too can buy a piece of that meteorite: https://www.meteoritejewelry.shop/collections/muonionalusta-sweden-1 https://www.meteoritejewelry.shop/collections/muonionalusta-... [1]: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muonionalusta https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muonionalusta [2]: https://www.bulova.com/global/product/96A312.html?cgid=lunar-pilot https://www.bulova.com/global/product/96A312.html?cgid=lunar... [3]: https://henryarcher.com/en-eu/products/akva-atlas https://henryarcher.com/en-eu/products/akva-atlas

freetime2 2y ago
Wow that's surprisingly inexpensive (to me at least who has never looked into the value of meteorites before), with some pieces even costing less than €100 EUR. Now I'm trying to come up with a reason why I shouldn't buy a piece.
- thih9 2y ago
  Cons: you might be able to get it for even cheaper from a non-jeweler seller; also, meteorites like this need to be handled with care to avoid rust[1]. [1]: http://midnightsunmeteorites.com/en/muonionalusta-meteorite-care.html http://midnightsunmeteorites.com/en/muonionalusta-meteorite-...

indulona 2y ago

meteorite watches are nothing unusual, exotic or expensive. there are also watches made from former soviet soviet space program debris(rockets) so you have a piece of metal that went into space(orbit) and back. i do not recall the name of the brand but it was very inexpensive and quite cool.

relistan 2y ago

Too bad it’s so unfortunate looking

eps 2y ago

Niwa's Lunokhods each have a piece of the same meteorite in them (Muonionalusta). If you ever wanted a lamp watch with a meteorite, here's your chance :) https://niwa.watch/collections/niwa-lunokhod-watches https://niwa.watch/collections/niwa-lunokhod-watches

KaiserPro 2y ago

Meteorite dials are quite common. Meteorite cases are rarer because they are not overly practical. They rust, unless treated, and even then the coating isn't impervious. Still its nice to see a "rolex midas" style watch back on the market. The big watch people (omega, rolex, and the other brands owned by LVMH) are a bit conservative in styles, so its nice to see something different, if brutalist. David Rutten made a brilliant 1920s style case https://www.watchprosite.com/horological-meandering/hands-on-review-of-the-david-rutten-dr-01-streamline/17.1314471.11282226/ https://www.watchprosite.com/horological-meandering/hands-on... They have gone through some changes and are now https://www.ukrony.com/ https://www.ukrony.com/

shrx 2y ago
Might be a nitpick, but is everyone OK with just taking the photos with a mobile phone nowadays, even for such product photography? They look terrible when viewed on a computer screen.
- KaiserPro 2y ago
  I think watchpro is more of a fan forum, rather than a product selling site. If you follow watch types on instagram the level of quality of photography is generally quite high.
- thrance 2y ago
  Maybe most people browse these sites from mobile devices,and that's why the photos are taken this way?

deleted 2y ago

[deleted]

m0llusk 2y ago

We're doing trendy luxury goods now? Really?