Prior to the time that anyone could set a Megalodon tooth on a desk, snap it, or look at its sharp edge, the tooth was engaged in something much more gruelling. The tooth was the largest predatory fish to ever live in the oceans of Earth. The tooth slid out. This is the case for the majority items. For a fossil this could be the beginning of a new story.
Image credit: fossildriven.com
The specimens offered by Fossil Driven have traveled through a geological process measured not in years or centuries, but in millions of years. This trip can alter how you look at fossils. The fossil is no longer just a glance at an intriguing object. You’re looking at physical evidence from a long-gone world.
First Stop: An Ancient Ocean
Take a look at the Megalodon the molars in West Java, Indonesia. Around 20 million years ago, areas that are dry land today were surrounded by warmer marine environments. Megalodons and other marine creatures resided in these waters together with Megalodons.
Similar to modern sharks, Megalodon always produced and lost teeth. Some of those teeth were later buried in sediments from the sea. If the conditions are favorable burial could protect them sufficient time to permit fossilization.
Then geology took over
The next chapter unfolded incredibly slowly. Sediments accumulated. Minerals interacted with the buried material. Geological forces altered landscapes and environments that had once been underwater eventually were transformed into the landscape we see today. These processes explain what shoppers immediately notice when looking at megalodon tooth auctions authentic fossil teeth have dramatically different colors.
Indonesian specimens that are part of West Java’s Miocene Bentang Formation are able to appear gold, tan, blue, brown, red or black. Or they can display several shades within a single tooth. The mineral environment around them contributes to the way a specimen takes on during its lengthy burial. It is difficult to achieve the result in large quantities using natural means. Each fossil has experienced the geological evolution of its own.
Discovery Begins A New Chapter
In the end, a fossil that has been hidden for decades is finally discovered. The identification and documentation is essential.
Megalodon collectors are looking through authentic teeth available for sale, the focus isn’t only on appearance. That’s why they need to know about the geological preservation, locality, age and repairs.
Natural wear does not erase the fossil’s past. It’s possible that a worn edge or root that isn’t properly formed and an incomplete serration, are all part of the fossil’s history. It is essential to accurately represent its condition.
Fossil Driven’s history of fossil identification goes back more than 13 years. We work with well-established fossil hunters and suppliers. When possible, specimens are described and reviewed with the most relevant details.
The Fossil gets into the hands of a person eventually
People buy real Fossils for a variety of reasons. Some people build a carefully classed collection. Some are looking to create an engaging conversation piece. A child who is fascinated by fossils from the past could receive a first fossil, which can spark the process of developing a passion for paleontology that will last a lifetime.
Megalodon teeth are but one way to enter that world. Dinosaur tooth and mosasaur teeth, trilobites and ammonites, together with mammoth, ammonite and amber material are preserved in diverse chapters in the history of Earth.
The greatest thing about knowing it’s authentic
A replica is able to reproduce the general form of a prehistoric tooth. It’s impossible to reproduce the past. It is impossible to recreate its past.
This is why authenticity is essential. If you’re holding a genuine fossil in your hand, you’re holding something that successfully made an almost unimaginable journey through the ages. The display case is the latest stage.