VERY RARE CANYON DIABLO RIM SPECIMENS
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These are sections from rare rim specimens of the Canyon Diablo, AZ (IAB) nickel-iron octahedrite.  While there is an abundant supply of Canyon Diablos on the market, they are all from the plains, not the rim.  There are no rim specimens available.  That is because permission to search the rim ceased many years ago, and now the Crater Museum and parking lot cover much of the north rim in the regions where many  were found.  Radiochemical analysis has shown that these shocked pieces have come from the rear of the impacting main mass.  This is consistent with the belief that the meteoroid approached from the N. or N.W.  Small diamonds (carbonados) are found from time to time in rims, but never in unshocked specimens from the plains.  RIM SPECIMENS have special importance because they have been  subjected to high, almost instantaneous, heating and shock at the time of impact.   These processes, in a way not yet fully understood, have altered the interiors and virtually destroyed the ordinary Widmanstatten structure.  Etched specimens, such as these, therefore, display an unusual granular texture.  Close inspection will show shiny schreibersite.  Unusual and subtle flow-like structures from rapid melting and quenching are very apparent under 10x magnification.  (Traditional etching methods using  nitric-acid tend not to show as much of this as we have been able to bring out using  modified etching techniques). The story told by the 'rims' is far more interesting than the beautiful Widmanstatten figures found on plains specimens.  Read about these unusual and rare meteorites in Rocks From Space by O. R. Norton (2nd ed.) or The Meteor Crater Story by George Foster (out-of-print), both available for sale from this website.

CD130  130.25 g.  Endpiece.  A most interesting shape, artistic as well as of scientific importance as a RIM SPECIMEN.  The etched surface almost looks like you see Widmanstatten figures, but you don't.  What you see is almost a ghost-like melted image of that structuring. While I have found what I call "true rims" (such as the pic on the left), I have also found these, which i call "near-rim", but in fact, found on the rim slope itself.  These have apparently barely missed the full impact of the impact shock, but still are different than the specimens found on the plains. Schreibersite grains stand out in striking contrast to the dull gray matrix.  This is a one-of-a-kind. I have not seen rim specimens available anywhere else for many years.      SOLD

(This is shown about actual size. 30 mm x 20 mm x 20mm thick)  Endpiece with etched surface. The muted pattern is the same type as CD 130 (above.) This specimen WAS found half-way up the NNE side of the rim.   SOLD

A few small slices from the same piece are available.  Please inquire.