The Orgueil Meteorite
A meteorite that fell in France was found, a century later, to contain seeds glued in by a 19th-century prankster.
What was reported
On the evening of 14 May 1864, a fireball crossed south-western France, and about 20 black stones fell near the village of Orgueil. They were soft and crumbly, rich in carbon compounds and water-bearing minerals, a rare kind of meteorite.
In 1964 scientists examining a sealed sample found plant seeds and coal dust embedded in it, held in place with glue. For a moment it looked like evidence of life from space.
Explanations offered
The seeds turned out to be a hoax, almost certainly planted soon after the fall, perhaps to stir up the debate over spontaneous generation and Louis Pasteur's experiments of the time. The meteorite itself is genuine and one of the most studied in the world, because its chemistry is close to the material the solar system formed from.
- When
- 14 May 1864
- Where
- Orgueil, Tarn-et-Garonne, France
- Witnesses
- Villagers in south-western France
- Status
- Explained
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.