Polished Megalodon Fossil Shark Tooth, 5"

Neogene, Miocene to Pliocene. A fossil tooth of Otodus megalodon, the largest predatory shark known, mounted on a black display stand. The broad triangular crown keeps its glassy black enamel, which deepens to near-obsidian at the center. The blade edges shade to a pale tan, picking out the triangle against the dark field. Fine vertical striations run down from the bourlette, the dark band of enamel where crown meets root. The thick, heart-shaped root shows a matte, pitted surface left by long burial in sediment. Its wide, symmetrical outline and upright cusp suggest a tooth from the front of the jaw, built for seizing whales and large marine prey. Centuries of mineral replacement turned the original dentine and enamel to stone, while the familiar shape survives intact. Item # 204950

Estimate:$300

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