Dr. Walter Flight — History of Meteorites. 117 



On the shore below these screes between high and low- water, 

 and within an area of about fifty square metres, twelve large and 

 many small iron masses were found. The six largest weigh 

 respectively 21,000 kilog., 8,000 kilog., 7,000 kilog., 142 kilog., 

 96 kilog., and 87 kilog. 



Thanks to the kindness of Prof. Nordenskjold, I am enabled to give 

 a representation (Plate IV. 1 ) of the largest mass (about 19 English 

 tons in weight), which is now preserved in the hall of the Pioyal 

 Academy at Stockholm. The second block, weighing about nine 

 tons, has, as a compliment to Denmark, on whose territory the 

 meteorites were found, been presented to the Museum of Copenhagen. 

 Another of the masses, weighing 195 lbs. 8 oz., is preserved in the 

 British Museum. 



For the earlier account of the discovery of these masses the reader 

 is referred to Nordenskjold's memoir, 2 and Nordstrom's paper. The 

 expedition of that year, 1870, having no means of bringing such vast 

 masses to Europe, a new expedition was equipped by the Swedish 

 Government in the following spring, consisting of the gunboat 

 " Ingegerd," Capt. F. W. von Otter, and the brig " Gladan," under 

 the command of M. von Krusenstern, who brought the meteorites to 

 Denmark in September, 1871. 



Nauckhoff in his paper draws attention to one remarkable block, 

 about 2001bs. in weight, which lay three feet below high-water. 

 On the under-side it was covered with basalt grains, cemented to- 

 gether with hydrated oxide of iron, and consisted of coarsely crystal- 

 line iron, containing much carbon, and which readily weathered. 



Sixty-five feet N.E. of the spot where the largest block lay, a ridge 

 of dark brown basalt-like rock comes to the surface. Through its 

 superior hardness it has withstood the denudation better than the 

 loose basalt-wacke on either side of it. It is soon lost to sight, but 

 reappears to take a direction towards the spot where the large iron 

 lay. The rock forming this ridge resembles ordinary compact 

 basalt. It is of finely granular texture. Near the margin it be- 

 comes crypto-crystalline, and is seen under the microscope to 

 consist of labradorite, greenish-brown augite and black grains of 

 magnetite. It will be found, when we come to speak of the analysis 

 of the rocks accompanying this iron, to accord in composition with 

 the basalt itself. It differs from it, however, in the presence of 

 two accessory constituents which are disseminated through the 

 parts forming the edge of the ridge, and are : a greenish hydrated 

 ferrous silicate resembling hisingerite, and a yellowish brown iron 

 sulphide. The analyses of the former mineral, it will be seen in the 

 sequel, show that it is not identical with the chlorophseite so often 

 occurring in basalt ; the sulphide completely accords in composition 

 with the troilite of meteorites. The columnar structure, so often 

 found in basalt, was not noticed, the cracks occurring near the sides 

 appearing to be all parallel to the margin. The surface of a freshly 

 broken fragment displays peculiar smoothness and lustre. On the 



1 This Plate will appear in the April Number with Part IV. of Dr. Flight's paper. 

 — Edit. Geol. Mag. 



2 Geol. Mag. 1872, Vol. IX. pp. 461, 462, and Plate VIII. 



