Large Chrysocetus 'Marine Dinosaur' Double Rooted Fossil Tooth

LATE EOCENE PERIOD, CIRCA 33 MILLION YEARS B.P.

4 1/4 in. (112 grams, 10.9 cm).

Cheek tooth from an early whale Chrysocetus sp., showing the characteristic accessory denticles on both sides and a double root.

Provenance

Property of an Essex, UK, gentleman.

Footnotes

Chrysocetus comes from Greek chrysous, 'golden' and ketos 'whale, in reference to the gold-colored bones of the type specimen. It is an extinct archaeocete cetacean belonging to the Basilosauridae, and unlike other basilosaurids, Chrysocetus did not replace its teeth but kept a single set throughout its life.

CONDITION

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LOT 3011