3.25" Bizarre Shark (Edestus) Jaw Section with Teeth - Carboniferous

Bizarre Shark (Edestus) Jaw Section with Teeth - Carboniferous #269692

This is a very unusual and hard to acquire offering of a fossil jaw section with two teeth from the Carboniferous-aged shark Edestus heinrichi. These rare teeth are recovered deep underground in the coal mines of Illinois. The teeth are in decent condition with glossy black-grey enamel preservation. Most of these teeth are found broken or worn.

Comes with a riker mount display case.

Edestus was a very unusual shark only known from fossils of teeth and jaw sections. They could likely reach 20 feet in length, about the same size as a modern great white. Like its other relatives like Helicoprion, it did not shed its teeth as they became worn. This caused the jaws to become elongated and resemble a monstrous pair of shears. It is unclear how these sharks would have caught and eaten their prey with this jaw configuration.

An artist's reconstruction of Edestus. By Dmitry Bogdanov