1.3" Allosaurus Tooth In Original Matrix

This is a nicely preserved tooth of Allosaurus fragilis, an apex predator of the Jurassic. It's 1.3" long which is about average size for Allosaurus teeth, has good enamel preservation and great serrations.

It was prepared so that it is still in it's original position on the sandstone matrix. It has not been remounted. There is also a unidentified chunk of bone embedded in the matrix an inch away. The sandstone matrix has been sculpted so that it creates a beautiful display for the tooth. The tooth has not been repaired or restored.

This tooth comes from what is being called the "Salt & Pepper Quarry", near Dinosaur. Colorado. Within the past several years this quarry has produced articulated remains of several types of dinosaurs including large theropods, sauropods and Ornithischia. There is a thin layer in the quarry, probably representing a sandy river bottom that produces many isolated teeth and tumbled bone fragments. This tooth was collected this summer from layer. There are far few commercial quarries operating in the Morrison Formation that the Cretaceous aged Hell Creek Formation so material is much more rare and sought after by collectors.