Prior to the time that anyone could set the Megalodon tooth on a table, take a photo of it, or look at its sharp edge, it was doing something much more gruelling. It was one of the biggest predatory sharks known to have ever been found in the oceans of Earth. The tooth fell off. For most objects, that is the end of the story. For a dinosaur fossil, this can be the very beginning.
The fossils from FossilDriven’s collection have gone traversed through a journey of geology which is not measured in decades or years instead, millions of years. This trip can alter the way you see a fossil. It’s no longer an intriguing object. It’s a physical representation of a world that disappeared many years ago.
First Station: An Ancient Ocean
Megalodon’s teeth are taken from West Java in Indonesia. About 20 million years ago, warm marine habitats were prevalent in the dry regions that are now. Megalodons as well as other marine creatures were present in these waters together with Megalodons.
Image credit: fossildriven.com
As modern sharks do, Megalodon constantly produced teeth and then lost them. Some of these teeth sank in marine sediments. In the right conditions, burial could protect them long enough for their fossilization.
Then Geology Suddenly Takes Over
The next chapter happened incredibly slowly. Sediments began to accumulate. Minerals were interacted with buried matter. Geological forces altered landscapes and submerged environments became land. Those processes help explain something shoppers immediately notice when looking at megalodon teeth for sale: genuine fossil teeth can have dramatically different colors.
Indonesian specimens associated with the West Java’s Miocene Bentang Formation are able to appear tan, gold, brown, red, blue or even black. Some exhibit various shades within one tooth. The surrounding minerals can affect the appearance of a fossil after it has been placed in a grave for a lengthy period. It is difficult to achieve this result in large amounts by natural processes. Each fossil has their own geological history.
Discovery Begins Another Chapter
A fossil which was hidden for many millions of years is found. Documentation and identification are now vital.
Collectors aren’t content with the appearance of megalodon teeth when they look for them. Details about the locality as well as geological age, preservation, repairs, and restoration help to explain what they’re really looking at.
Natural wear won’t remove the fossil’s history. A worn-out tip, a sloppy roots, or a sloppy serration may be just a small part of what happened to that specimen prior to and following burial. It is crucial to represent the condition of the specimen accurately.
Fossil Driven has more than 13 years of experience in the identification of fossils and works with established suppliers as well as fossil hunters. When possible, specimens are described and analyzed with the most relevant details.
The Fossil is eventually in someone’s hands
Real Fossils are purchased for many different reasons. Certain collectors have carefully categorized collections. Others want a single dramatic conversation piece. A child who is intrigued by prehistoric animals may receive their first real fossil, that sparks a lifetime love for paleontology.
Megalodon’s teeth are just one option to enter this world. Dinosaur tooth, mosasaur trilobites and ammonites as in addition to mammoth and ammonite and amber material are preserved in diverse chapters in the history of Earth.
The best thing about it is knowing that it’s true
A replica is able to replicate the general shape and size of a tooth that was found in prehistory. It can’t reproduce its past. An authentic Megalodon tooth was part of an ancient animal, was able to enter an environment that was completely different from our current environment and remained in place through geological changes. remained buried for decades, and eventually was discovered.
It is for this reason that authenticity is essential. A fossil is the tangible evidence of a journey which has been almost impossible to imagine. The most recent stop is in the display case.