Iron, ataxite (ungrouped) Ryazan district, Russia

Dronino meteorites were first found in the Ryazan district of Russia in 2000 by a mushroom hunter. The region has been inhabited for about a millennium, and as there are no reports of a large meteorite impact it can be confidently inferred that the mass must have fallen more than a thousand years ago when the area was uninhabited. This age is consistent with the high degree of terrestrialization in evidence—not only had the meteorite’s shape changed as a result of its exposure to Earth’s elements, but superior specimens—including the meteorite now offered—acquired a highly crenelated texture that is unique to Dronino specimens. Less than 2% of all meteorites are of the iron variety, and 90% of those are members of distinct chemical groups that hail from about a dozen different asteroids. 10%, however, are chemically unrelated; they come from unknown parent bodies and are referred to as “ungrouped” irons. Dronino is one of these unusual, ungrouped irons—a sought-after designation for both the scientific and collecting communities. Given the unique chemical make-up of Dronino meteorites, one would expect that after interacting with Earth’s geochemistry for 1000 years there would be intriguing results. Dronino certainly delivers.