Now offered is what is among the rarest of collecting opportunities: the ability to acquire a large specimen from a centerpiece exhibit on display at a world-renowned museum. The Willamette meteorite is the largest meteorite recovered in continental North America. It is also the most famous meteorite in the world. Discovered aboveground in the Oregonian woods, it is believed the meteorite fell in Canada and was conveyed to Oregon by glaciers or floods during the last Ice Age. Had it impacted the find site directly, it would have buried itself well underground given its mass of more than 15 tons. According to Clackamas Indian tradition, the meteorite called “Tomanowos,” or “Heavenly Visitor,” was delivered from the Moon to the Clackamas, and healed and empowered the Native American community in the Willamette Valley since the beginning of time. It was in 1902 when a miner named Ellis Hughes noticed the meteorite in the wooded property of Oregon Iron & Steel with whom he shared a property line. Hughes moved the meteorite onto a wagon, and using a horse, cables and capstan, over a period of months he moved the massive chunk of iron-nickel onto his land. He charged the public a nominal fee to view the meteorite and in October 1903 the Portland Oregonian reported Hugh’s discovery and the crowds swelled. One of the visitors was an attorney from Oregon Iron & Steel, and he noticed the path extending into his employer’s land. Oregon Iron & Steel subsequently sued and, following a trial, was awarded possession of the meteorite. It was then exhibited at the 1905 Lewis & Clark Centennial Exposition in Portland where it was seen by more than a million attendees. Among those who took a look was Dr. Henry Ward who wrote the first scientific abstract on the meteorite. Shortly afterwards, Oregon Iron & Steel sold the meteorite to Mrs. William E. Dodge who gifted the meteorite to the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. For the last 120 years the meteorite has bee

American Museum of Natural History, New York City Macovich Collection of Meteorites, New York City