2016-08-24 Wed

The MCI Mint issued a 1000 Franc 1 oz. silver coin with an antique finish for the African nation Burkina Faso mounted with a small piece of a meteorite that landed at Chateau-Renard in Montargis, near the Loiret Valley in France on June 12, 1841.

Meteorites are parts of comets and asteroids and most of them are preserved at scientific labs to study cosmology. The ones which are available in the market are extremely expensive. 1 gram of the Chateau-Renard chondrite meteorite is almost $300. The meteorite’s fall was published in the American Journal of Science and Arts, Volume 42 on August 14, 1841.

Photorealistic colouring is used to create the reverse design featuring the meteorite against a blue sky, about to land in Montargis and the surrounding buildings. The obverse features the national coat of arms of Burkina Faso.

Mintage limit of the coin is 750 and they cost $159.90 each.