The White One’ Talsint Eucrite & Museum-Quality Fossil, Dinosauria Collection Are Leading Bonhams’ Upcoming Sale

At the edge of the High Atlas, taking a lost path between two mountain ridges, shepherds from the village of Meriama searched desperately for early grass after September rains cooled down the summer. Halfway through, they stumbled on some distinctive solid rocks they thought were meteorites. They had no idea of the magnitude of their find. It was a white-crusted eucrite with flow lines and two fragments, which leads Bonhams’ upcoming sale. This eucrite is Talsint 002, a published white HED (Howardite-Eucrite-Diogenite) achondrite named Talsint (in Morocco) after the location it was found. This meteorite was dubbed the ‘Albino Meteorite’ or ‘White Meteorite’ before settling on the name ‘The White One.’ In a bid to preserve the authentic story, the name comes with the meteorite, along with the coordinates of the original location of the find.

Also available is a notable, museum-quality fossil of Lepidotus elevenses (Bainville, 1818). It is said to be a 180-million-year-old Jurassic-era fossil from Holzmaden, Germany. Lepidotes was a genus of extinct freshwater fish that lived during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. Lepidotes had large, bony scales that were relatively resistant to decay and decomposition, which made them more likely to be preserved in the fossil record. However, despite the relative abundance of Lepidotes scales, complete specimens of this fish are rare. This auction will also offer a Dinosauria collection. This category is led by a museum-quality cast replica Tyrannosaurus bataar shoulder mount and a full Triceratops skeleton. An array of minerals from around the globe are sure to entice those seeking display specimens. Find more information about the Natural History Fossils, Meteorites, and the Joanna Candler Collection of Quartz and Other Metaphysical Minerals auction and register to bid by visiting Bonhams.