Space for sale: Christie's is holding a meteorites' auction and it's very beautiful (photos)

It is believed that 5-6 tons of meteorites fall to the Earth per day. However, not every body of cosmic origin that meets the surface of our planet looks presentable. The Science and Natural History Department of Christie's, whose staff will begin trading the meteorites today, presents the most highly artistic specimens, according to the Daily Mail.

The highlight of the auction is a "highly aesthetic" stone meteorite, which weighs over 7 kilograms and can go for a record $ 180,000 (pictured below). “Unlike 99% of all meteorites, this one did not fall or roll over when falling to the Earth, but remained stable throughout its fall”, - Christie's said in a press release.

Other interesting specimens are meteorites containing "precious stones from space", as well as a weighty piece of Mars, estimated at $ 50,000. Inside the sample are bubbles of glass containing the Martian atmosphere: from friction in the atmosphere, the meteorite heats up and melts, and when it cools down, gas bubbles form inside - the very fragments of the atmosphere of the Red Planet.

One of the samples contains stardust, which is seven billion years old: the catalog describes this meteorite as "the oldest matter that mankind can touch".

There is also a shimmering silver ball - it was created from a meteorite found in Sweden, originating from the core of a collapsed asteroid (pictured below).

Another lot, which is estimated to fetch between $ 15,000 and $ 25,000, was found by a child after the Tirchert meteor shower in Morocco. The find was accidental - while the adults were ransacking the ground, the boy was looking for a shadow - and as a result he found a piece of meteorite stuck between the branches of a tree.

The next photo shows a fragment of the Goba meteorite, the largest meteorite that fell to Earth. It weighed about 66 tons and was 9 cubic meters in volume. Goba fell in prehistoric times and was found in Namibia in 1920. Now Goba fragments are used to make jewelry, which can cost around $ 1,000 for a small ring.

Deep Impact: Martian, Lunar, and Other Rare Meteorites online auction will begin on February 9, 2021 and will run until February 23.