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SPECTACULAR MUSEUM CLASS RARE SET OF BOTH LEFT AND RIGHT LOWER MOLARS WITH PARTIAL JAW BONE FROM THE SAME SOUTHERN MAMMOTH MAMMUTHUS MERIDIONALIS Gravel Quarry - Southeastern Poland EARLY PLEISTOCENE PERIOD: 1.8 million years ago Compared to Woolly Mammoth fossil deposits, fossils from the European Southern Mammoth are much more scarce and despite a substantial portion of our operations being based in Europe, this is the first time we have had the privilege of offering an ASSOCIATED (from the same animal) set of spectacular molar teeth from this beast. I don't ever recall seeing a set this nice in any museum in Europe. For the educator, museum curator or demanding collector, this is a MUST HAVE set. This is a RARE complete pair of fossil molars from one of the largest of prehistoric elephants that ever lived in on the planet, the giant mammoth known as the SOUTHERN MAMMOTH or scientifically as Mammuthus meridionalis. Fossil of these massive beasts of the final Ice Age are uncommon and perfect additions to exhibits or collections to demonstrate the early lineage of the mammoth. The teeth of the Southern Mammoth are unique and show different anatomy in the plate structure compared to other species of mammoths. This is a MUSEUM-CLASS fossil set and includes a substantial portion of the lower jaw still holding a perfect, embedded lower right side molar tooth. The other side which was found together with this jaw and tooth, includes a fully rooted opposite side molar tooth with much of the bone still attached within the long, delicate intact roots. Both teeth have full chewing cusps in a perfect, undamaged state. The anatomy is so well shown and preserved in such beautiful condition that this set would be THE SET to use as an educational reference for what M. meridionalis teeth should look like. Sold individually, either of these molar teeth would be a rare offering but to be able to acquire a matched pair from the same animal and with one displaying a full, unbroken root, makes this a rare acquisition, indeed. These Southern Mammoth teeth are complete with NO REPAIR AND NO FABRICATION. 100% GENUINE! Cracks are old and have been stabilized, they are not repairs as the tooth is unbroken and was found as shown. The Southern mammoth these fossils came from died with the teeth in its jaws. These are not the more common fossil mammoth "spit" teeth you often see sold for a fraction of the price of this fine set. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for any collector of rare prehistoric elephant fossils. ALL our Mammoth teeth are dried for at least one year prior to selling to ensure against disintegration. They are then chemically treated in multiple steps with multiple types of hardeners to protect their intact nature. We guarantee your tooth will not fall apart. If you purchase a Woolly Mammoth fossil tooth from ANY SOURCE without the supplier performing this lengthy drying process and treatment, cracks will likely grow and it WILL likely fall apart as the tooth can take an extremely long time for the core to fully dry. Emerging 55 million years ago, the group of mammals called Proboscideans are identified by the presence of tusks and a trunk and include mammoths, mastodons and elephants. The oldest mammoth remains have placed the beginnings of the beasts in Africa but eventually, they migrated to Europe and Asia. Around 1.7 million years ago, Mammuthus meridionalis began reaching North America and later evolved into the Columbian mammoth, otherwise known as the American mammoth. One of the first species of mammoth was the Southern Mammoth, or Mammuthus meridionalis. This extinct giant resembled an Asian elephant but with larger tusks. A full grown Mammuthus meridionalis stood around 15 feet high at the shoulder (for comparison, a Woolly Mammoth stood 10 - 12 feet high). It was a huge proboscidean, THE LARGEST ELEPHANT THAT EVER LIVED ON THE PLANET. Mammuthus meridionalis was also the FIRST mammoth that ever lived emerging in the Early Pleistocene Period 1.8 million years ago during a time between glacial periods in Europe. This mammoth lived in warm, tropical forests. As the final Ice Age came to be and temperatures dropped, vegetation that supported this species died out and this reduction in food source along with the colder climate led to the extinction of this species and heartier species later emerged like the smaller Woolly Mammoth that could survive the harsh climate. Some believe that Mammuthus meridionalis is an ancestor of the Woolly Mammoth, Mammuthus primigenius. The teeth of Mammuthus meridionalis are made up of lesser and more robust plates than the teeth of Woolly Mammoths. This was so the Southern Mammoth could chew up the coarser forest vegetation. Over time, the cheek teeth of Woolly mammoths evolved into a design of more numerous and tightly arranged enamel plates with less thickness. The tusks of the Woolly mammoth developed a more dramatic curvature and their overall body size decreased. These changes were advantageous in surviving the increasingly cold conditions of the last Ice Age. Such teeth modifications enabled the Woolly mammoths to chew tougher tundra vegetation. The reduction of body size accompanied by the reduction of the ears and trunk along with the development of a thicker pelt enabled the mammoths to survive in the harshness of a frozen world. All mammoths have four teeth in their skulls, two uppers (one on each side) and two lowers. Over the course of the life of the animal, six sets of teeth will grow, a worn set being pushed forward and out to make room for a new and unworn set. This characteristic is still true of modern elephants. A baby mammoth at age 6 will have already had three sets of teeth. By 13 years of age, the fourth set emerges followed by a fifth set at age 27 years. The final set of teeth come in around 43 years of age and as it wears away, the animal eventually starves to death and dies on average between 60 and 80 years of age. Interestingly, the animal's life is limited by the fact that after the sixth set, no new teeth grow in to replace the final worn down set and the animal is no longer able to chew its food. Mammoth teeth can also tell us the age and species of the creature. Scientists can approximate age by comparing the length and width of the molars to corresponding age and tooth size charts from modern elephants. The species is determined by the number of ridges found in the first four inches of the flat chewing surface. Mammoth remains have been found in northern regions of North America, Eurasia and Europe. SUPER RARE MUSEUM-CLASS SET OF LOWER MOLARS AND PARTIAL JAW FROM THE SAME ELEPHANT - TEXTBOOK REFERENCE ANATOMY!!! 12 x 11.5" overall with jaw bone, teeth are 9.4" - 8" in lengths SOLD LMX053 INCLUDES STANDS Actual Item - One Only |
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