The Buddha Carved from a Meteorite
A small Buddhist statue was said to have been brought back from Tibet in the 1930s. In 2012, scientists found it had been carved from a meteorite.
What was reported
The 'Iron Man' is a statue about 24 centimetres tall of a seated figure, thought to be a Buddhist deity. It was said to have been brought to Germany from Tibet by an expedition in 1938–39, and kept in a private collection.
In 2012, a team led by the planetary scientist Elmar Buchner at the University of Stuttgart analysed it and announced it was carved from a rare iron meteorite, the Chinga meteorite, which fell near the Mongolia–Siberia border around 15,000 years ago.
Explanations offered
The meteorite origin is accepted, but other experts on Tibetan art argued that the style is wrong for an old Tibetan piece, and that it was probably carved in the 20th century, perhaps in Europe. Its story is still debated.
- When
- Studied in 2012
- Where
- Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
- Witnesses
- Scientists who studied it
- Status
- Origin debated
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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