To me, provenance is the history of ownership.
We know there was one Mooresfort stone, but to have a piece of the stone
that can traced back to the likes of Charles Giesecke of the Dublin
Society - that the particular sample passed through his hand - or in the
case of Wold Cottage - to have a sample that once belonged to the famous
chemist Friedrich Wohler, this is the essence of provenance to me, and in my
case, it adds enormous value to the specimens. When I look at some of these
samples in my possession, it provides inspiration for me to write some of my
articles about the history of meteorites.
Will everyone react the same way - no. Collecting autographs or meteorites
is a very personal undertaking - collecting anything for that matter is -
and what is important to one person, is secondary to another.
So, for me, provenance is key. It's about the history of meteorites on
Earth - how they were viewed, how they were traded, and how they were
studied - or in many cases - not studied - by the scientists who had access
to them.
Just me two cents. Quick answer to a very thoughtful question.
Mark
Mark Grossman
Meteorite Manuscripts.
www.meteoritemanuscripts.blogspot.com
- Original Message -
From: cdtuc...@cox.net
To: meteoritelist meteorite-list@meteoritecentral.com
Sent: Monday, November 14, 2011 1:09 PM
Subject: [meteorite-list] What is Provenance?
List,
Our hobby of collecting meteorites is strongly dictated by provenance so I
ask ; which of the two primary definitions below most apply's to the
collection of meteorites and why?
Merriam-Webster Online dictionary defines provenance as
(1) the origin, source.
(2) the history of ownership of a valued object or work of art or
literature.
Origin; Ancestry, Parentage.
Source; Point of origin or beginning.
It seems to me that without having a bullet proof origin the history of
ownership wouldn't mean much. And knowing where a meteorite comes from
does indeed add to it's value. Once origin is scientifically proven then
and only then does history of ownership play a role. It then actually
plays a huge role.
Back in 1991 I was asked to sell Gina Haag's collection of meteorites in
my upscale Art Gallery.
Gina Haag for those who are new to this hobby was Bob Haag's first wife.
After their divorce Gina asked me to help her sell her material. With
Bob's name associated with the collection it was very easy to sell the
entire collection for her rather quickly.
Back then there was no Internet and even Bob would sell material by Xerox
copy's sent through the mail. He would trace the actual slice of the
meteorite and add a brief description and mail it off to his list of
collectors. I still have such lists as I used them as a price guideline
for Gina's meteorites.
They flew out of the gallery for two main reasons. The first was origin.
People could not believe they could actually own a real piece of a falling
star. And second was the fact that many people had seen Bob on TV pitching
these rocks from space.
Origin has two meanings in our collecting world. One is the origin in the
universe and the next is the origin of where it was found on Earth. Both
being of significant importance. This also helps us categorize the rocks.
Unlike coins and most other collectibles condition plays a small role in
the evaluation of meteorites. We tend to treat our rocks more like works
of art and a rusty or ugly work of art is worth less than pristine
beautiful samples but, origin still rules.
I can only guess why American meteorites are worth so much more than ones
found elsewhere. As with Art it might be because Americans have the most
money to invest? This seems to be true of other art forms as well. I mean
people pay more for work by Jackson Pollock (140 mil.) versus Picasso (100
mil) I think just because one is an American and the other is not.
Similarly in our world people pay more when certain names are associated
with the rocks. Nininger, Haag, Chadni, The Meteorite Men, TCU, ASU. etc.
...
Falls vs. finds are another unique aspect of our hobby. This I understand
as the falls add a great story to the collection. What I don't get is why
people are willing to pay a premium price for an initial offering when
they know from past experience that the price will likely fall once the
initial excitement fades. Also people will pay more if it hit or killed
something. Even the carcase's and otherwise damaged man made things are
worth money and they are not even meteorites.
Of course it goes back to origin. If it hit something it must be from
space. No boubt a doubt it. And if the other origin is the moon the sky
would be the limit to the value whereas a common type can be very
affordable.
So, it seems to me our best collections should be filled with not only
scientificly verified material but also with labels from great sources. We
have a very unique addiction here.
Please share your thoughts.
Thanks
Carl
