Kola Superdeep Borehole Specimen - Kola, Russia

Kola Superdeep Borehole Rock Specimen (3,792 Meters Depth)

Here is a singular opportunity to own a verified core section from the legendary Kola Superdeep Borehole (SG-3) in Russia, the deepest artificial point on Earth. Recovered from a depth of ~3,792 meters within the Proterozoic Pechenga complex, this crystalline metamorphic hand specimen offers a direct tangent to the hidden depths of our planet. The sample showcases a highly compact crystalline matrix, beautifully mottled with distinctive pinkish-salmon patches and deep greenish-black minerals, perfectly capturing the intense structural and metamorphic changes occurring miles beneath the continental crust.

Kola Deep Continental Crust Geology

At a depth of nearly 3.8 kilometers, the borehole penetrated ancient volcanic-sedimentary sequences subjected to severe regional metamorphism up to the greenschist facies. Geologists originally hypothesized that the Earth's continental crust transitioned cleanly from granite to a distinct layer of basalt at a seismic boundary known as the Conrad discontinuity. Instead, core samples recovered from this exact depth zone disproved the theory, revealing that the seismic changes were actually caused by intense metamorphic alteration, micro-fracturing, and hydraulic fracturing of these deep Proterozoic formations under immense lithostatic pressure.

Overturning Geophysical Assumptions

Before the SG-3 project, science textbooks mapped the deep Earth based entirely on indirect seismic wave data. The physical extraction of these deep-crust rocks shocked the scientific community by showing that water and mineral alterations survived at depths and temperatures previously thought impossible. The Kola Superdeep Borehole stands as tangible geologic evidence that rewrote modern geophysics.

Product Information

Images professionally photographed under controlled studio lighting using Zeiss optics and a pro-grade Canon camera.

Rarity and Significance Ratings

Collector and Classroom Appeal

As a legacy piece from the pinnacle of Cold War-era deep exploration, this specimen holds peerless value for advanced collectors, museums, and educators. While surface outcrops of the Pechenga complex can be found, an authenticated sub-surface slice extracted from miles down within the historic SG-3 borehole remains one of the ultimate holy grails of planetary geology.

Questions Commonly Asked

Add this historic piece of deep-crust exploration to a serious Earth science collection, classroom display, or high-end museum-style geological exhibit. Very Limited Inventory.