[meteorite-list] Willamette cutting question

2009-09-12 Thread John Hendry 
I just finished reading 'Rocks from Space' and there is mention that the
Willamette iron was gifted to the American Museum of Natural History by Mrs
William Dodge with the condition that it never be cut up. In the context of
this agreement how did it come about that a substantial 30lb end slice was
removed? Is there any published background on why this agreement was reneged
upon?

Personally I feel the removal has excessively damaged the overall aesthetic
of the meteorite - a bit like if an 1/8 of an inch was sliced off the end of
someone's nose. So my question is that if it is decided that a
morphologically spectacular meteorite needs to be sampled why cannot a core
be cut with the entry point on a relatively flat surface - perhaps the
bottom of a regmaglypt. After core extraction it would be relatively easy to
disguise the hole but keep the overall external appearance intact. 

John

 

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Re: [meteorite-list] Willamette cutting question

2009-09-12 Thread Mr EMan 
Hello John

Circular diamond coring bits only came into use recently. The Willamette 
donation was in the early 1900's. I can only assume that the saw method of the 
time dictated the location of the cut: large heavy frames using a wire loop 
with abrasives hand fed into the grove.  It is not like one could easily rotate 
the mass easily. 

I am happy to see the use of core sample extraction more frequently in 
sampling. However, coring has a drawback in that it is very difficult to 
lubricate and can heat up the core changing some magnetic states.

Elton
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