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10.3 grams. Provenance: Smithsonian Institution.   H4

TKW 5.56 kg. Observed fall November 30, 1954, in Oak Grove, Alabama, USA.

Also called the Hodges meteorite because a fragment of it struck Ann Elizabeth Hodges. The grapefruit-sized fragment crashed through the roof of a frame house, bounced off a large wooden console radio, and hit Hodges while she napped on a couch. The 31-year-old woman was badly bruised on one side of her body but able to walk.



Darryl writes:

As Darryl and Alan Rubin conveyed in the Christie's catalog

The only documented instance of a meteorite injuring a person occurred on November 30, 1954 at 2:46 pm in Sylacauga, Alabama. The fireball from which the meteorite originated was seen in broad daylight across three states and its descent was accompanied by sonic booms. Some eyewitnesses thought a plane had crashed; others felt this extraordinary event was the nefarious doings of the Soviets — the result of rampant Cold War paranoia. Two meteorites were recovered. One crashed through the roof of Ann and Eugene Hodge’s home, where it bounced off a radio and struck Ann Hodges while she napped. While Hodges and her landlord fought over the meteorite’s ownership, the U.S. Air Force took custody. While the law favored the landlord, public sentiment was solidly behind Hodges, who exclaimed, “God intended it to hit me. After all, it HIT me!” The second meteorite was found by a local farmer, Julius McKinney, who quickly sold his specimen to the Smithsonian. The proceeds from this sale enabled McKinney to purchase a new car and home. The Hodges finally owned the meteorite that punctured their roof (and almost Ann herself) after a year of legal wrangling and a payout to their landlord. However, interest had waned during the course of the year and when the Hodges couldn’t find a buyer, they donated the rock to the Alabama Museum of Natural History. Never having recovered from the emotional distress associated with these events, Ann Hodges suffered a nervous breakdown and died at the age of 52.

This specimen is LOT 3 in Christie's first dedicated METEORITE AUCTION — Wed., April 20th in London



For more information on the auction