My Latest Hell Creek Dino Fossils - T-Rex And Triceratops

[AJ Plai]

I just can't help it... I have always wanted these 2 particular specimens in my collection ever since when, as a child I got to lay my eyes on a picture in an encyclopedia book depicting these two titans battling one another in a pre-historic setting - that image fascinated me and gave me the passion for these dinosaurs in particular to this day. I have always been on a look-out for some nice fossil but the really really good ones are hard to come by and very expensive to boot. So I settled for a smaller goal and tried to acquire the more common-to-find ones.

Now, finally I got them, even if its just some small specimens from Ebay, all together for about $120 without breaking my bank in the process LOL. I didn't really mind much whether if it was that good of a deal or not since these are close to impossible to get one around here in where I live. Now that my first small goal is satisfied, my next step will probably be to look for better quality and larger ones, but until then my desire for these two dinosaurs will be kept sated for a while....

Anyhow, here are the specimens I just got:

T-Rex Tooth Tip about 2 cm

Well, frankly, a small specimen like this it may well turn out to be a NanoTyrannus if worse comes to worst but hey at least I didn't sink a couple hundreds in the deal...

Triceratops Frill and one small tooth and one larger tooth

Triceratops Frill Details:

[AJ Plai]

Here are some more pics of the Triceratops teeth close-up:

The large one (about 3.8 cm):

The small one that came with the frill (about 1.6 cm):

Anyway, would be great to get some opinions and input from fellow members here who may be more experienced with these dino fossils than me to help see whether if these are in good condition or quality or not. Well the T-Rex Tooth Tip is probably not considered a good specimen since it was rather cheap compared to a good one... but the Triceratops ones are what I am curious, since I haven't come across these often and don't know much about what features would constitute a good and collectable tooth.

Anyway thx!

Edited February 23, 2013 by AJ Plai

[cfin1974]

very cool gotta have them...great price I bought a nice rex tip also...

[jpc]

I have a lot of experience with these late Cretaceous beasts. Yes, you have some nice specimens there. Nothing earth-shattering, but as you mentioned, these things can be expensive.... too much so, I think. Considering your budget limitations, that's not a bad rex tooth. With only one view, I can't say if I would call it Tyrannosaurus or Nannotyr.

Edited February 24, 2013 by jpc

[Down under fossil hunter]

Hi AJ

They look like great acquisitions to your collection, dino material is the best!

Your smaller Tric tooth is what's known as a 'spitter' tooth which is basically a worn tooth that is broken off or shed during feeding, the other larger Tric tooth appears to have one of its three roots preserved which makes it a rarer find.

Neat Tyrannosaur tooth tip, now you just have to save up and buy the rest.

[Auspex]

It's nice to capture a childhood dream; congratulations!

<I'm still dreaming of Archaeopteryx...>

[AJ Plai]

Thx guys, it was certainly my most satisfying acquisition yet.

It's nice to capture a childhood dream; congratulations!

<I'm still dreaming of Archaeopteryx...>

I think your dream is even more ambitious than mine! Hope you find and get a hold of what

you are looking for too.

Hi AJ

They look like great acquisitions to your collection, dino material is the best!

Your smaller Tric tooth is what's known as a 'spitter' tooth which is basically a worn tooth that is broken off or shed during feeding, the other larger Tric tooth appears to have one of its three roots preserved which makes it a rarer find.

Neat Tyrannosaur tooth tip, now you just have to save up and buy the rest.

So what would a "good & complete" Tric tooth look like? Would these specimens go for

several hundreds price tag, or more?

[AJ Plai]

Here are some more close-up pics of the T-Rex tooth tip outside the gem jar:

[jpc]

Can you show us the bottom view of the tyrann tooth?

Here is a complete Triceratops (or Torosaurus?) tooth. They have two roots (not three) and notice the space between the roots would fit another similar tooth. This is the way they were stacked up inside the jaw. I have collected probably hundreds of trike teeth, most of them like your little spit out tooth you got with your frill piece, but this is the one and only I have found that was complete. Three views of the same tooth:

Edited February 25, 2013 by jpc

[AJ Plai]

JPC

That Tric tooth looks fantastic! Thx for sharing, now I know what my next target should be like now

Was that tooth very expensive when u acquired it? Or was it an acquisition from a dig?

And here are some more pics of the T-Rex Tooth Tip I have, top and bottom views:

Thx

[Coco]

Hi,

JP, your dinosaur tooth is marvelous, I suppose it is rare ! (Put of the cream on your hands, they are quite dry)

Coco

[jpc]

yeah, the tooth is rare. I found it on a dig. (I rarely buy fossils). Was it expensive? Well, it cost me gas money to get to Montana... where I found it.

[squalicorax]

Beautiful tooth, great size!!!

[AJ Plai]

jpc, on 25 Feb 2013 - 22:23, said:

yeah, the tooth is rare. I found it on a dig. (I rarely buy fossils). Was it expensive? Well, it cost me gas money to get to Montana... where I found it.

Wow, very nice find and lucky you! I was hard-pressed just to find a decent Tric tooth online, but you managed to find an extraordinary one from personal dig. Thx for sharing

[Tyrannoraptor]

I had an opportunity once to buy a Triceratops tooth that looked just like the one jpc found (great find by the way! ).

Nice buy, AJ Plai! It can be hard when you're mainly interested in dinosaur fossils, especially if you want to get a hold of some of the "big ones" like T. rex and you have a tight budget. I think you did fine, it's a nice looking Tyrannosaur tip!

[sseth]

Great little collection. I always enjoy pondering these amazing beasts and visualizing that these came from living breathing creatures. Thanks for posting

[AJ Plai]

I had an opportunity once to buy a Triceratops tooth that looked just like the one jpc found (great find by the way! ).

Nice buy, AJ Plai! It can be hard when you're mainly interested in dinosaur fossils, especially if you want to get a hold of some of the "big ones" like T. rex and you have a tight budget. I think you did fine, it's a nice looking Tyrannosaur tip!

Thx! Building a nice dino collection is certainly not easy nor cheap! Hopefully, from looking and handling these small more common specimens will help me gain experience in hunting for larger and better quality ones. Ah, I wish I have a private land somewhere in Hell Creek where I can actually dig for a good find like some of u guys in the USA.

Great little collection. I always enjoy pondering these amazing beasts and visualizing that these came from living breathing creatures. Thanks for posting

Thx, for the compliment, and I can totally relate with that imaginative and awe-inspiring experience Edited March 6, 2013 by AJ Plai

[AJ Plai]

Awesome Rex tooth! Definitely a great way to start off a collection! I would like a Triceratops tooth, but that'll have to wait. I recently paid for a genuine Tyrannosaurus Rex tooth fragment that comes with a certificate of authentication. Not nearly as cool as your specimen, but it will do, considering the fact that I am young and have no income.:-) Anyways, great specimens!

Thx, I got mine from quite a lucky bid with low competition, so even if there's a chance that the Rex tooth turns out to be a nano-rex I still think it was still a pretty good deal

Great to hear u got yourself a Rex tooth with CoA, good luck in working towards the next and better specimen!