Native Iron (Terrestrial Iron)

Native iron from the remote Putorana Plateau, Russia, an unusual and seldom encountered occurrence of terrestrial metallic iron. Unlike the vast majority of iron found naturally on Earth, which occurs bound within oxides or sulfides, native iron is exceptionally uncommon and restricted to a handful of unusual geological environments.

The Putorana Plateau is a vast volcanic province in northern Siberia composed largely of flood basalts and intrusive rocks related to the Siberian Traps. Native iron from this region occurs as metallic masses and blebs associated with these unusual volcanic environments and remains an uncommon collector’s material seldom encountered on the market. Specimens from this locality are sought after for their rarity, unusual genesis, and resemblance to meteoritic iron despite being entirely terrestrial in origin.

Weighs 37.6g