Meteorite Jewelry Education

Gibeon is a meteorite that fell in prehistoric times in Namibia. It was discovered in 1838 and named after the nearest town: Gibeon, Namibia. The term Gibeon encompasses the whole meteoritic material fallen from the sky during this fall. This material is classified as iron meteorite belonging to the chemical group IVA. Gibeon meteorites are composed of an iron-nickel alloy containing significant amounts of cobalt and phosphorus. The crystal structure of this meteorite provides a classic example of fine octahedrite and the Widmanstatten pattern is appreciated for its beauty both by collectors and designers of jewelry.

The name Campo del Cielo – which is Spanish for “Field of Heaven” refers to a group of iron meteorites and area where they were found northwest of Buenos Aires, Argentina. These meteorites, the heaviest group ever discovered on earth, were first reported in 1576. Long before being documented, the aboriginal inhabitants knew the “Field of Heaven” and its many craters well. Natives used these iron-based stones for weapons and worshiped these stones from the sky. Spanish explorers doubted stones had fallen from space and assumed they came from a volcanic eruption. However, today we know these stones are 100% from space and definitely something worth revering!

In 1947 this meteorite crashed through the earth’s atmosphere violently just north of the Russian city Vladivostok. No other meteorite with this big of an explosive magnitude had been witnessed ever before. It fell during the day, capturing the attention of many witnesses with its bright-hot bolide and loud explosion. Everyone within 300 km saw this terrific event. It loudly burst in mid-air before breaking into pieces. Shrapnel from this great explosion can now be worn by you – where anyone can visibly see the catastrophic effects of the atmosphere on this storied stone!

The oldest meteorite known to man, 4.5653 billion years old, was found in Scandinavia near the Muonio river. This meteorite has experienced four ice ages! While crashing through the atmosphere it broke into forty pieces, with some of them keeping most of their original gargantuan size. Because it was exposed to cosmic rays while in space and a heavy shock while colliding with earth, the Muonionalusta has an extremely rare mineral within it – formed only by extremely high pressure. This mineral is called Stishovite. Wear this time-tested and rare rock with grace!

Moldavite isn’t like the others – it’s actually a glass formed by a meteorite impact 14,700,000 years ago! With its brownish-green tint, Moldavite looks a lot like bottle-glass but is far more prized, of course. Forming in beautiful “flower-bursts” of glass, this type of meteorite exudes natural beauty! As seen in the ring shown here, moldavite can also be cut to have facets and comes in a variety of shapes, including round and pear.

El Hammami Meteorite is said to have fallen in January of 1995 in Mauritania, Africa (southwest of Mhamid, Morocco). Nomads witnessed the fall, but the meteorite wasn’t discovered until over two years later by a man named Edwin Thompson. In November of 1997, Thompson traveled to Mauritania, Africa and collected six fresh-looking meteorite stones at the base of the El Hammami Mountains in Mauritania. El Hammami was discovered to have many sheets of iron running through it, giving it a unique texture and shine all its own.

Price should never get between you and the beauty of Meteorite’s pattern. Gibeon Meteorite’s pattern, the Widmanstatten figures, has found its way onto a cheaper product also offered by us. What you see isn’t actually meteorite, but titanium engraved to mimic the Widmanstatten pattern found on Gibeon meteorite. Mimetic meteorite is an affordable alternative to our signature Gibeon Meteorite rings. This titanium band shines with a polished finish.