5,2 cm rotbrauner Zahn des Carcharocles Auriculatus

5,2 cm rotbrauner Zahn des Carcharocles Auriculatus

The 5.2 cm tooth of Carcharocles auriculatus has a beautiful sheen and reddish-brown enamel. The coarse serrations are still clearly visible, as are the typical lateral cusps. The narrow, darker brown bourelette is almost completely preserved. The darker brown tooth root has been slightly eroded and smoothed over millions of years in the water.

Carcharocles auriculatus, a prehistoric giant shark from the Otodontidae family, lived around 28 to 45 million years ago in the Middle to Late Eocene. It is considered the ancestor of the megalodon and reached an impressive length of up to 9 meters. The teeth of this shark are characteristic: they have a triangular crown with large, coarsely serrated lateral cusps (denticles) that form a razor-sharp saw edge. A pronounced bulge on the lingual root side reinforces the robust shape. The teeth of adult specimens measure 8 to 10 cm in height.