I FOUND A GEM FROM HEAVEN!
I believe extraterrestrial peridot is the very rarest gemstone in the world. AGTA and others rate bixbite or red beryl as the rarest (see my red beryl page). But few even know about peridot created somewhere in space, at the beginning of our solar system! Even more rare, is extraterrestrial cat's-eye peridot. I found some of this extremely rare chatoyant cat's-eye meteorite peridot in August 2006, in a pallasite meteorite. Some of the faceted and cat's-eye peridot gems that I have cut, are shown below and a few gems are available for sale. An article about the chatoyancy was published in the 2008 Summer issue of "Gems and Gemology" p. 177.
These are EXTREMELY rare and unique gems. They come from one of the very rarest meteorites, a pallasite, that contains peridot (pronounced pair-uh-doh) the August birthstone. The peridot crystals were mixed in with the molten iron -- at the beginning of our solar system, when two plannetoids or asteroids collided! This collosal event is so hard to even imagine. After the collision, the pallasites were thrown out into space. Scientists say they are estimated to be in the neighborhood of 4 to 5 BILLION years old! That's incredibly older than any gem from earth. After roaming around space -- who knows where they've been -- our tiny little earth captures one and it explodes as it heats up in our atmosphere, then the pieces that aren't burned up, fall to earth. It's a wonder ANY of the peridot crystals survive. In fact most as so fractured that they are not big enough to cut. But that is only after they are freed from the solid iron that surrounds every crystal! That's why only a few meteoric peridot gems have ever been cut.
Until Steve Arnold found the meteorites and my discovery of the cat's-eye phenomenon, I do not believe any cabochon cut meteoric cat's-eye gems had ever been cut before. I found a magazine article that noted the inclusions and suggested a cabochon might produce a phenomenal (star or cat's-eye) gem. Ref "Gems and Gemology" Spring 1992. Steve's find is also unique, due to the fact that it contains peridot crystals that are large enough to facet and cut cabochons.
I have recovered and cut some unbelievable fine gems of meteorite peridot! These are truly a gift from heaven! I call them "heavenite". Recently GIA Labs, announced they can now distinguish and certify meteoric peridot. It can be positively identified and distinguished from earth peridot. My gems come with my signed and sealed Production Certificate that shows all of the nomenclature for the gem, a Certificate of Authenticity from the Kansas Meteorite Association and a Cert from the hunters who found the meteorite.
TV Show Questions
The Science Channel is doing a show about hunting meteorites, featuring Steve and Geoff Notkin, another partner in the project. There has been some confusion about my claim to the disovery of chatoyancy in this meteorite peridot. The editors of the TV show gave credit to Steve and Geoff for the discovery of the meteorite specimens and the way it was presented, some viewers have mistakenly thought Steve also discovered the cat's-eye peridot. In a recent letter Steve stated, "...there isn't any question that Rick ...is indeed the one who made the discovery." He also says "From one of the rough gems that Rick was working with, he cut his first cabochon gem that displayed the "Cat's-Eye" effect. As far as we can tell, using my (Meteorite) material, Rick is the first person to have actually cut a cabochon pallasite peridot displaying this chatoyancy from ANY pallasite's peridot."
