Meteorites and “Cabinets of Curiostities” can be popular with guests.

The sciences of meteoritics and cosmochemistry are rich in fall and recovery anecdotes, lore, dramatic science discussion points, and other conversation topics: One small fragment (Zagami) is from the surface of Mars. Another (Chelyabinsk) is from an object that created window-shattering sonic booms during its fall in 2013 Russia. Canyon Diablo was responsible for the formation of Barringer Crater near Winslow, Arizona, some 49,000 years ago. And the spectacular fall of a meteorite called Whetstone Mountains was witnessed at a desert Sky Safari event on June 23, 2009. The field bridges astronomy and geology with chemistry, physics and even astrobiology. Star and planet formation, galactic chemical evolution, the origins of life, hazards from near-Earth object impacts, supervova explosions, separation of core from mantle, and the age of the Solar System are up for discussion when you hold a meteorite in your hand.

The image gallery below also features additional museum-quality rocks, fossils and rare artifacts.