David and List...in concert with the current discussion on NWA 5400 and
6292: I want to share with everyone why I even started this passion,
because it goes directly to David's point. It also points to a reminder of
why we do this crazy passion. Essentially, it is knowledge that drives most
of us, at the very least the quest for knowledge....
When the political winds started blowing along about global climate trends,
I decided to investigate for myself. I know/knew that more powerful sources
were impacting our planet, more than aerosol cans.
I wound finding Rocks-From-Space. Eyes open. (My original copy is so
dog-eared and re-re-re-read that I eventually bought a hard-cover with
Richard Norton's blessing and signature....I keep it next to the other
awesome texts of our time!) And, the rest became history, literally.
None in my circle of debating friends had any clue about meteoritic impact
events, let alone "instant impact" events that have changed the static model
of specie emergence and decline....actually off the page and not even known.
The status quo static model for evolving species being the prevailing trend,
I was a lone wolf even bringing this up.
So, I decided to become best-friends with meteorites and all things
meteoritic that I could find. Power is found in things true, every time
it's used. Knowledge drives my passion, not $$ (although, since I have a
pitiful limited supply of it, it does limit my ability to look and see)....
Just a thought for relativity. -Richard Montgomery
This passion we all have in meteorites
----- Original Message -----
From: "David R. Vann" <[email protected]>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, September 28, 2010 10:24 AM
Subject: [meteorite-list] pairing and collecting
I'd like to make a couple of observations about both pairing and
collecting.
Several comments have been made regarding preserving the value of a
meterorite,
with reference to pairings decreasing value, etc. I don't know why you
collect,
heck, I don't even know why I collect things. It is apparently a part of
human
nature (for at least some) . Sure, we rationalize it by saying "it is a
beautiful thing", "it has an interesting story", etc., but in the final
analysis, these things are not necessities. Somewhere along the line, I
think it
was with baseball cards, the rarity of some items, combined with an
increasing
market from an expnading population, drove the price for these items out
of
sight. And thus, the concept of "investibles" had its genesis. This is a
marketing ploy to get you to buy things. However, if you think that
collectible
items are an investment with a monetary return, you need to think very,
very
carefully about this idea. The vast majority of collectible items will not
make
you rich. An example: a friend bought a Saint Gaudens gold coin a while
back.
Whereas his stocks declined, he ultimately sold the coin for twice what he
paid
- so he thought he made out. The actual rate of return was just about 3
1/2
percent. Guess how much inflation went up during that time? I have watched
many
types of collectible investments over the years. Most actually lose money
after
you account for inflation. Many of them return the same buying power you
had
when they were bought. A few, very few, bring a great return on
investment.
Where do meteorites fall? I doubt that you will make much money on them,
Bob
Haag nonwithstanding. There is always a point in a new market where there
is
money to be made, but after that, not so much. As a dealer, can you make a
living? Quite possibly, yes - that can be answered by others. Will there
be a
return as an investment - I seriously doubt it. No collector should
collect
because he or she expects a return on investment - you should collect
because
you like the item, like looking at it, like its story/history, or as
Martin
said, because you can be involved in some way with the science. In other
words,
for the pleasure brought to you by the possession of the object. If you
make
money on it, well then, that's a great bonus. But it should never be the
purpose, as you will be disappointed. I'm sure many on this list can add
their
own experiences in this regard. Just remember, next time the speculating
bankers
take down the world economy (again...how many times is it now?),
meteorites will
have no value - but your can of Spam will.
So, if my meteorite now has a new friend, a pair, am I to despair? Well,
not
from the scientific point of view, because that is supporting evidence.
How
about from the investment point of view? Does the value decrease because
we now
have two stones? Does it? (see above) How about from the point of view of
the
collector? Now you can buy two, rather than just one. What are we
collecting,
after all? We are collecting names. Yes, names, like Orgueil, Almahatta
Sitta,
Weston. If the current understanding is correct, the lithological
classification
of a meteorite has something to do with the body(ies) it may have
originated on,
and the processes on that planetoid. In other words there is a very good
likelihood that ALL H5 stones are Paired!!! OMG!!! What does that do to
the
value of my Bassikounou? Nothing, actually. Almahatta Sitta is just
another
ureilite, after all. But one with the best story of all (from the
scientific
point of view). Many, many stones will be paired in the end, because they
came
from the same source. Occasionally, they will be "lauch-paired", i.e.
knocked
off the source at the same time. After all, if the current ideas are
correct,
the entire class of HEDO meteorties were probably launch-paired in a
colossal
impact that knocked off a quarter of Vesta. Does having several specimens
of
different names (whether Frankfort or Kapoeta or NWA 1929) make any one of
them
less valuable? I don't think so. Collecting Frankfort or Kapoeta, you are
collecting a story (they are falls). Collecting NWA1929, you are
collecting a
name, but only the story that it is a Howardite, and likely some part of a
shattered asteroid. The first two cost more because of their story, not so
much
because of their classification. For NWA5400 and NWA6162, we are
collecting
stories again. Whether Greg H. charges more than Peter M., or vice versa,
has to
do with what they want to get - it is theirs, after all - they can charge
anything they want. Will I pay it? Well, that depends on whether can
afford it
and want a piece of that story (it might be an 'Earthite", in case you
haven't
been paying attention).
So, in summary: don't collect because you think you will get rich
colecting -
you won't. Don't imagine that pairs affect really affect actual value;
they
don't because, in the end everything will have pairs. My fifty dinars
worth (to
paraphrase Mike G., actual mileage can and does vary).
OK, that's enough for now, back to analyzing rocks....
David R. Vann, Ph.D.
Department of Earth and Environmental Science
THE UNIVERSITY of PENNSYLVANIA
240 S. 33rd St.
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6316
[email protected]
office: 215-898-4906
FAX: 215-898-0964
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