The auction of the Robert Elliot Collection of Meteorites for sale, the largest collection of meteorites ever to come on the market in the United Kingdom, was a great success. 90% of the 171 lots found buyers, with international bidding and some fantastic prices for rare pieces.

Rob Elliott's passion for all things science and space related began at the early age of 8 years old, as Apollo 11 prepared to land on the Moon. His interest as a junior amateur astronomer grew and developed into a keen interest in comets and meteorites in particular.

Rob's first introduction to meteorite collecting came by chance in the mid-90s, while skimming through the small ads in the back pages of an astronomy magazine. Here he found an overseas seller offering small samples of an iron meteorite, found in the Namibian desert. After much deliberation, Rob purchased a small polished and etched slice for a few dollars, and embarked on a passionate hobby that was destined to grow into something far bigger.

Several more purchases followed and Rob put together a modest collection of different meteorites, found in various countries around the world. As a sideline, he found that he could fund the increasing size of his collection by re-selling any duplicates, as well as selling pieces removed from his larger meteorites. After some initial sales success and with the full support and backing of his wife Irene, Rob decided to throw his full effort into the business of buying and selling meteorites for a living. A sizeable bank loan started the business by allowing the purchase of some high-end, exotic meteorites, which Rob then cut and prepared before offering them for sale to meteorite collectors.

He also approached several museums, scientists and curators who might be interested in studying the material, or simply adding it to their own meteorite collections. As most museums prefer to exchange meteorites for other types rather than to purchase them outright, Rob became a frequent visitor, meeting with the curators of some of the top institutions and museums of natural history around the world. This exchange of meteorites allowed Rob to acquire many rare, important and historical meteorites, some of which had never been available to private collectors before.

Over the following years, Rob built a highly respected, world-class meteorite collection and was ranked as one of the world's top meteorite dealers. His customers have included people from all walks of life: devoted meteorite collectors, well-known celebrities and artists, renowned scientists, and just about anyone who wanted to experience and own a 4,500,000,000 year old ‘rock from space’!

As well as buying and selling, Rob has spent many years hunting for meteorites in the hot deserts, mainland Europe, and also much closer to home in the British Isles. Two notable British meteorites stand out from his successful meteorite hunting finds: the Glenrothes meteorite (lot 70), which he found in Fife in 1998, and the particularly rare Hambleton meteorite (lots 122 & 123) discovered in North Yorkshire in 2005. These remain the only meteorites that have ever found by chance in the United Kingdom.

Other items of note include: Wold Cottage (lot 32), a witnessed fall in Yorkshire in 1795 which became a major piece in gaining acceptance that stones do sometimes fall from the sky;  the ‘Christmas’ meteorite (lots 68 & 69), which fell on the village of Barwell, Leicestershire on the 24th December 1965; and a helium tank from the Russian Salyut 7 spacecraft (lot 171), which went out of control and fell to earth as a fireball in 1991.

Through his work with meteorites, Rob eventually got to meet and dine with those same “first men on the Moon”, the Apollo astronauts who gave him so much inspiration at an early age.

Rob has now retired as a dealer and collector, deciding instead to put all of his efforts into meteorite hunting - an expensive endeavour with highly unpredictable results! To help fund this passion he decided to put the collection up for auction; creating a rare opportunity for collectors, enthusiasts and newcomers alike to add to their collections or simply acquire some very sculptural and intriguing artefacts!

Following widespread international media attention, most lots found new owners in a busy saleroom with internet and telephone bidding.

For more information please contact Gavin Strang

gavin.strang@lyonandturnbull.com