In 1910 in volume 15 of this Magazine I was able to place on record some details respecting the 'Cullinan' diamond from South Africa, the largest crystal of diamond yet found. I have now been able to collect some information about the largest known meteorite. The facts concerning remarkable obiects such as these are apt to become exaggerated and distorted, and it is well to place on record the true and accurate data while they can still be ascertained.

In the early part of 1931 public interest in South Australia was stimulated by the fall of the Karoonda meteorite on November 25, 1930, and its subsequent discovery by an Adelaide University party led by Prof. Kerr Grant. In consequence of this Prof. Grant was informed separately by Mr. B. Bowman of Tempe Downs and Mr. J. M. Mitchell of Oodnadatta that fragments of meteoric iron were to be found surrounding several crater-like depressions near Henbury Cattle Station in Central Australia. The number of craters was variously described as three and five.

In July 1930 a fragment of this meteorite was received at the Government Laboratory, Perth, with a request from the sender that he should be informed of its nature and value. Realizing its scientific interest, one of the authors (E. S. S.) took advantage of a visit to Beneubbin (lat. 30° 48′ S., long. 117° 51′ E. ; about 150 miles NE. of Perth in the South-West Division) to interview the finder and suggest that the whole mass should be handed over to the Government Laboratory for examination, a specimen detached for the British Museum, and the main mass finally presented to the Western Australian Museum in Perth. This arrangement was agreed to.

Dr. Herbert Basedow of Adelaide generously presented in November 1931 for the British Museum collection of meteorites a pallasite which he had collected in Central Australia in 1924 while leading the Vice-Regal Expedition. During his extensive explorations in Central and Northern Australia it had remained unpacked for some years. He gives the locality as on the Burr Plains, NNE. of Bond Springs in the Alice Springs district ; lat. 23° 33′ S., long. 133° 52′ E. This is immediately north of the MacDonnell Ranges and about ten miles north of Alice Springs. The fragment was found lying on the surface and only partly buried in loose ferruginous sand. No doubt other pieces of this material remain to be found in the district.

Starting in December 1930, Mr. Bertram Thomas made the crossing of the Rub' al Khali, the desert region of Arabia lying between the mountains of the south coast and the Persian Gulf. Never before had this desert been crossed by any European, and probably rarely even by Arabs. The material collected on this expedition has been presented by Mr. Thomas for preservation in the British Museum.