meteorite specimens prior to 1790 hard to find?

Question

The French Academy of Science proclaimed at in 1772 that meteorites were just superstitious nonsense, because rocks could not fall from the sky. But, did museums really throw out their specimens? Is it hard to find meteorite specimens in Europe that date prior to 1790? Anyone know this? Thanks, I am writing a book on the history of science.

Answer 1

Actually they just found a meteorite in Kansas that they estimate to be around 10,000 years old.

http://edition.cnn.com/2006/TECH/space/10/16/meteorite.kansas.ap/

Answer 2

Hi. In Antarctica there is a place where meteorites which fell into the deep snow get transported by the moving snow pack until the reach a hill or mountain. The snow sublimates and the meteorites are just picked up. I never heard of the museums throwing anything out, but there is still a good supply of them that fell a long time ago.

Answer 3

The Arizona Meteor Crater still contains the bulk of the original meteorite from 50,000 yrs ago:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meteor_Crater

Anywhere you can dig down to the 65 million yr old strata, you can find iridium from the meteorite that caused the end of the dinosaurs.

Answer 4

Meterorites, when found by primitive peoples usually turned them into other things, like tools or the rock upon which they established their silly religion (Kaaba in Mecca). They have always been around but because they were a source of Iron and nickle they either were turned into swords by man or chunks of rust by nature.