BRONTOTHERIUM FULL LOWER JAW WITH TEETH

Chadron Formation - White River Badlands, South Dakota, U.S.A.

EARLY OLIGOCENE PERIOD:  37.5 - 32 million years ago

To our knowledge, this is the only genuine fossil jaw available anywhere of this massive beast of the Oligocene, the Brontotherium.  To call it RARE is an understatement!  Despite there being many of these creatures buried in the formation, the entire fossil-bearing region is owned by both the United States government and partially runs into Indian reservation land.  ALL fossils from this location are illegal to collect which is why you probably will never see such a magnificent and as complete a specimen as this specimen ever again outside a museum.  We were very fortunate to acquire this from a very old private estate collection before which it was legally collected prior to current restrictions.

This massive TWO FOOT lower jaw illustrates just how impressive and giant these creatures were.  This jaw is nearly complete with the bone only having approximately 10 - 15% restoration, only due to repair of the jaw from the fragmented state it was found in.  Other restoration is limited to the surface pigment of the bone, the posterior left molar and anterior portions of the two front teeth.  Many of the genuine teeth in this jaw are of the finest quality we have ever seen.  The last close-up images show this.  A small anterior portion of the jaw including the related teeth is not present and in keeping restoration to a minimum, it was decided to decline any recreation of this area.  

Brontotherium lower jaws are VERY RARE and seldom found in association with the upper skull.  Due to the harsh winters of the area where these remains are found, subsequent freezing and thawing of fossil bones literally explodes the valuable fossils and specimens that are not either distorted or shattered are hard to locate.  

We give this specimen our HIGHEST recommendation as one of the rarest fossils we will most likely ever offer.  It is extremely unique and makes for a show-stopping display wherever on exhibit.  

In the Badlands of South Dakota and Nebraska, the Sioux Indian tribes revered these beasts in their ancient mythology.  They believed that when these beasts galloped across the sky, thunder was created hence the name "Thunder Beasts" which is what the name 'Brontothere' means.  They were massive beasts, 8 feet high at the shoulders, and were larger than a modern day Rhino.  Prominently rising from the snout of these creatures was a giant growth made up of compacted hair like a modern Rhino horn is constructed.  This Y-shaped protrusion swept upward and back, reaching higher than the rear of the head.  

The Brontotherium lived in herds in a habitat of scrubby woodlands which dominated their region back in the Early Oligocene.  It is believed as the climate changed and these woodlands slowly became open grasslands, the Brontotherium died out because their diet was not able to be sustained by their new environment.  During the peak of their existence, volcanic activity in the area was very heavy and entire herds were subsequently buried and have been found fossilized in deposits of volcanic ash from millions of years ago.

ONLY ONE KNOWN AVAILABLE FOR SALE - ULTRA RARE FOSSIL!

24" in length  x 14.5" wide

$5995     LM1003     Actual Item - One Only

5995