We Are Buyers: Sell Us Your Meteorites, Tektites, or Collection - SkyFall Meteorites (2024)

We Are Tektite and Meteorite Buyers

Are you looking to sell your meteorites or tektites? SkyFall will buy your entire collection, a part of your collection or even an individual specimen.

• If there was a confirmed meteorite fall in your area, town or village, then jump to Section 3.
• If you are a meteorite dealer, broker or hunter from the Sahara, Gobi, Atacama or any deserts, or dry lake bed, then jump to Section 2.
• If you want to know the pros and cons of the options to sell meteorites, tektites or collection, read Section 1A below.
• If you want to evaluate meteorite dealers for professionalism, background and ethical business practices, read Section 1A: How to Evaluate a Dealer
• If you are ready to contact us with your list of tektites or meteorites to sell, then jump to Section 1B.
• If you are a rockhound or you found an interesting rock that you might think is a meteorite, then please review our Found a Meteorite? page.

Section 1A: Collector Wanting to Sell Meteorites, or Tektites (or Heirs Having Inherited Collections):

If you are reading this section, then you are likely wanting or having to sell meteorites, a favorite tektite or even your entire collection. Whether you need to sell meteorites due to unforeseen circ*mstances, a desire to shift your collection in a different direction, having heirs with different interests, or you having inherited a meteorite or tektite collection, SkyFall Meteorites are tektite and meteorite buyers.

We encourage any potential seller to carefully evaluate the options presented here:

• Option 1: Sell meteorites or tektites on eBay, or social networking platforms like Facebook.
  • PROS:
    • Maximize your sale price.
  • CONS:
    • May require a significant amount of time to sell your collection.
    • Requires a great deal of upfront effort and must be able to take adequate pictures and create good descriptions.
    • May be difficult to get client’s attention if you are unknown to the community.
• Option 2: Consign your specimens to a dealer for them to sell meteorites or tektites on your behalf.
  • PROS:
    • Expert help in selling your specimens.
    • Leverages the dealer’s network and reputation.
    • Sell faster than Option 1.
  • CONS:
    • Dealer is paid on commission, typically 25% to 35%.
    • You get paid only when a specimen sells.
    • May still require longer to sell than desired or needed.
    • Not all dealers are able to take professional pictures.
    • Dealer will expect to have specimens on hand for proper marketing and protection of their clients and business.
• Option 3: Sell meteorites, tektites or entire collections to a dealer all at one time.
  • PROS:
    • Fastest option to get money in hand.
  • CONS:
    • Dealer will offer between 20% to 35% of the average retail price. Under very rare circ*mstances, dealer may offer more for high quality meteorites or those in high demand. The percentage offered by dealer will ultimately depend on factors that may include time to sell individual specimens, opportunity cost (if they buy your specimens, they can’t necessarily buy another collection or new offering), how much effort will be required to sell a specimen, the provenance of the specimens, and risk.
    • Depending on quality of individual specimens, dealer may may only be interested in a few specimens.

If you are ready to contact us with your list of tektites or meteorites to sell, then jump to Section 1B.

How to Evaluate a Dealer:

1. Are they members of professional organizations like the IMCA or the GMA? (Note, a dealer need not be a member of any organization to be reputable)
   1. View our credentials.
2. Are they known within the meteorite or tektite communities?
   1. SkyFall Meteorites is well known throughout the scientific and collector communities. References can be provided by request.
3. How long have they been in business?
   1. SkyFall Meteorites has been a part-time business since Nov. 2013 and a full-time business since Sept. 2015.
4. Is it a business or a hobby?
   1. SkyFall Meteorites is a full-time business incorporated in Texas as an LLC.
5. Do they have the photography skills to properly market your specimens?
   1. SkyFall Meteorites uses professional photography equipment, a custom made light box and professional processing software to achieve excellent results. Some of our images have appeared in magazines and have been used by scientific community.
6. Do they have an up-to-date and modern website for you to review and judge their expertise?
   1. Yes.
7. Do they understand the meteorite and tektite markets, what is hot and what is not, and how to establish an average retail price?
   1. As a professional appraiser and someone who stays up to date on market pricing and fluctuations, I can quickly establish average retail prices based on conditions, provenance, rarity, desirability and various other factors. Note, I will not provide an appraisal of your specimens as part of this process.
8. Do they provide a clear engagement agreement that outlines the services they will offer, commission and payment terms, your pricing requirements, etc.?
   1. SkyFall Meteorites provides a formal engagement agreement that outlines expectations of both parties and ensures clarity. No surprises.

If after reading the options and information above you feel like SkyFall Meteorites is a good fit for you (either Options 2 or 3) to sell meteorites, tektites or your entire collection, then read on. Though a select few meteorites and tektites are easily recognized, the vast majority require proper documentation such as receipts, specimen cards and any other supporting evidence to establish the provenance and chain of custody.

Section 1B: Sell Classified Meteorites or Tektites from Known Strewnfields or Locations

If specimens are classified meteorites that are listed in the MetBull, or tektites from known strewnfields, then in an email, please provide the following:

1. 1. In a Word or Excel document use one line for each specimen. If you have multiple specimens of the same meteorite or tektite, then use one line for each.
   2. Pictures are not required at this stage.
   3. On each line, include:
      1. Name of meteorite or tektite (for tektites please provide location)
      2. Weight in grams (mg, g or kg)
      3. Description (slice, partial slice, fragment, individual, crust/no crust, orientation features, etc.), and condition (especially important for tektites like broken, flea bites)
      4. Provenance (name of dealer purchased from at a minimum)

Finally, please review important information at end of this article by clicking here.

Section 2: Sell Unclassified/Found Meteorites from Sahara, Gobi, Atacama or Any Desert, or Dry Lake Bed

If meteorite is UNCLASSIFIED or was recently found, and you are a meteorite dealer, broker or hunter from the Sahara, Gobi or Atacama deserts, then in an email, please provide the following:

1. 1. Weight in grams (mg, g or kg)
   2. Approximate dimensions (mm or cm)
   3. Photos of the specimen taken in sunlight and in focus with a decent camera or smartphone. We do not need perfect images, but we do need images that allow us to evaluate specimen. Please review photos before sending, if they are unclear, we will reject your submission.
   4. Price (US$/g). We have no time for pricing games, so please provide dealer prices. Note that SkyFall Meteorites will only pay for specimens after they have been received safely, in same condition as shown in the photos.

SkyFall Meteorites are meteorite buyers, but we will not deal with middlemen. We will negotiate only with the person who has legal possession of and is authorised to sell the meteorite. As meteorite buyers, we focus on the acquisition of the following meteorites:

1. Oriented or beautifully sculpted meteorites of all types. We are not interested in specimens with large breaks or that have been glued back together.
2. Any fresh, type 3 ordinary chondrite.
3. Any achondrite especially ungrouped.
4. Pallasites with fresh olivines.
5. No interest in weathered chondrites, HED achondrites and mesosiderite stony-irons.

Finally, please review important information at end of this article by clicking here.

Section 3: Sell a Recent Meteorite Fall in Your Area

SkyFall Meteorites are meteorite buyers of any fresh, witnessed falls. If there was a confirmed meteorite fall in your area, a meteorite came through your roof, or your town, village or area was hit by many stones, then in an email, please provide the following:

1. 1. Weight in grams (mg, g or kg)
   2. Photos of the specimen taken in sunlight and in focus with a decent camera or smartphone. We do not need perfect images, but we do need images that allow us to evaluate specimen. Please review photos before sending, if they are unclear, we will reject your submission.

Important Information to Consider:

1. In order to maximize the value of your collection in the future, be sure to keep meticulous records. Provenance is paramount to ensure that the specimens being bought and sold are properly represented and described. In selling meteorites or tektites from your collection, the dealer extends their reputation to your specimens. No respectable dealer will participate in activities that may jeopardize their reputation.
2. Dealer may refuse to buy a specimen or collection if the provenance is weak, and may even return a purchased specimen if it has been misrepresented to the dealer prior even after finalizing the deal.
3. Dealer will pay for specimens only after they have them in hand and can ensure that specimens expected match what was received.
4. No one will appreciate your collection as much as you do. When you enter into a business relationship with a dealer, they are looking at the financial value of the collection, not its sentimental value. The offer a dealer makes to you is not personal in nature.
5. Information on consigning your specimens to an auction house like Bonhams or Christies is outside the purview of this article.
6. This article is merely used for informational purposes and in no way represents a commitment or indicates the terms of a future potential sale to SkyFall Meteorites.