Aletai Meteorite

Multiple items are currently in stock, each with unique variations from the one shown here.

Meteorite is showcased in a display case 4.5"x 5.5"

The Aletai meteorite is a true space traveler—an iron-nickel meteorite found in the Altay (Aletai) region of northern Xinjiang, China. Pieces of it have been recovered for well over a century, including some famously large masses.

Composition : Aletai is mostly metal, primarily iron with about ~10% nickel, plus small amounts of other minerals commonly seen in iron meteorites (like troilite and schreibersite). Scientifically, it’s classified as a coarse octahedrite in the IIIE-an group.

The pattern everyone loves: When a slice is cut, polished, and etched, Aletai can reveal the classic Widmanstätten pattern—those crisscrossing metallic bands that look almost like a frozen circuit board. That pattern forms only when metal cools incredibly slowly inside an asteroid, long before it ever reached Earth.

What it’s used for: Because it’s both durable and beautiful after etching, Aletai is popular as collector slices, desk/display pieces, and even jewelry or inlays where the natural pattern becomes the centerpiece.