AUSTRALIAN DOLLAR
CANADIAN DOLLAR
EURO
POUND STERLING
US DOLLAR
Product Description
ITEM #
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SH18-016
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ID
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Hemipristis serra
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FOUND
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Yorktown and Pungo River Formations,
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AGE
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MIOCENE / PLIOCENE: 23.3 - 5.3 million years ago
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SIZE
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1.4" long on the diagonal
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CONDITION
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AS FOUND - NO REPAIR OR RESTORATION
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NOTE
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EXCEPTIONAL SPECIMEN!
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INCLUDES DISPLAY BOX - Actual Item - One Only
Comes with a certificate of authenticity / information sheet |
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From the world-renown Lee Creek Formation in North Carolina, U.S., this is superb grade fossil Hemipristis serra tooth, otherwise known as the extinct Snaggletooth shark. It is a premium, hand-select tooth from this famous region wonderfully displayed in its own glass-topped box. Stunning color is present in the enamel with well-preserved cusp serrations. NO REPAIR AND NO RESTORATION.
Super gem specimens like this have previously sold for between $200 and even over $300 in online auctions. Lee Creek produces what many consider to be the finest color, preservation and condition of all species of fossil shark teeth that are found there. Fossil teeth from this shark are not necessarily rare and can be had of average qualities for a fraction of this specimen's price but teeth of this quality and color ARE rare. Teeth from Lee Creek further carry a premium as this is one of the most sought-after provenances for fossil shark teeth amongst advanced collectors.
Hemipristis serra is an extinct shark but has a modern relative called Hemipristis elongatus. H. elongatus lives in the Western Pacific and Indian oceans. Only attaining a length of 7 feet, H. elongatus teeth average about an 1 inch in length. Fossil teeth from Hemipristis have been found three times that in size! The teeth of the Hemipristis serra are dramatically serrated and slanted on the upper jaw and slender and straight with no serrations on the lower. It seems like a perfect combination for certain death to prey; bottom spikes to hold you in its jaws while the curved "steak knife" uppers just saw away parts of you for the creature to swallow!
On the south shore of the Pamlico river in North Carolina near the Outer Banks lies an open pit phosphate mine still in operation. This mine produces some of the finest fossil shark teeth in the world and the region is known as "Lee Creek" by most. There are four recognized formations each with its respective representation of an epoch in time. They are in order of oldest first, PUNGO RIVER (Lower Miocene), YORKTOWN (Early Pliocene), CHOWAN RIVER (Late Pliocene), and JAMES CITY (Pleistocene). It is currently believed that the Pungo River layer once existed as a sub-tropical marine environment. The lowest strata of this formation is theorized to have been under 100 - 200 meters of water when covered by a prehistoric ocean with the uppermost layer having existed at a depth of 70 meters under water. The Yorktown layer is believed to have been under 80 - 100 meters at its lowest strata with a gradual decrease in the ocean depth to a point where the water was as shallow as 15 meters at the last time period of that formation's existence.
Approximately 50 species of sharks alone are found in the Lee Creek mine. Other fossils exist representing skates, rays, bony fishes, mammals (mainly marine), reptiles (turtles) and a host of marine invertebrates. Lee Creek is a world-class site for some of the finest shark fossils. These specimens are coveted by collectors the world over. All it takes is to hold one of these gem teeth in your hand and behold the beauty up close and personal. In doing so, you too, will be hooked forever on the beauty of Lee Creek teeth.
