Megalodon's tooth is next

[Ezio Bonsignore]

With the Keicho now on its way to us, and approved by you, the next item in the lady's wish list is a Megalodon tooth. I have been scrupolously following the discussions here, and beyond the identification of blatant forgeries and manipulations, there seems to be a variety of opinions as to the amount of repair/reconstruction that could be regarded as acceptable, particularly as regards the root.

My personal preference is, I would focus attention on the integrity of the blade (enamel, serrated edges), then on size and then on color, and if these aspects are OK  I would be be willing to accept a fair amount of root erosion or repair (but not total falsification) - although I'm not completely clear as to whether erosion is preferable to repair, or the other way round. Of course a perfect. very large blade with intact roor would be preferable, but such a combination would push the price beyond my reach.

Plase take a look at this West Java thing. It is rather large (13.5cm) and I find it appealing, even though the root looks weird even to me. What would you suggest? Worth pursuing (within reasonable price limits) or to be ignored?

[Darktooth]

The root is fabricated.

[Ezio Bonsignore]

I though so, and indeed the seller says it has been "restored". Still (correction) it is 16.5cm not 13.5cm, and the serration looks stunning. Beyond the potential intererest in purchasing (or not) this particular tooth, I am trying to understand what the assessment criteria should be. Given that the root is fabricated, do the conditions of the blade and the size make this tooth "buyable," of course is the price stays within limits, or is it to be anyway avoided - even tough I know only too well I will never be in a position to afford a similar blade + intact original root? Shall I perhaps rather look for a smaller tooth with so-and-son serration, but with not root manipulation?

[Darktooth]

If the price is reasonable to the fact the root is fake and you don't mind that, then the purchase is up to your discretion.

[Ezio Bonsignore]

Thanks. I'll see how the auction goes.

[Ezio Bonsignore]

Thanks. I'll see how the auction goes.

[Gareth_]

There are plenty of places to buy legitimate Megalodon teeth from, I buy regularly from one seller in the USA. He sells mostly ledge teeth, some are not in great condition but some are in amazing condition. I'd have one of those any day rather than a questionable tooth from Indonesia - to be blunt, I would never consider owning the tooth in your pics because of the entirely fake root, the given measurement means nothing too, as it's likely exaggerated from how big the tooth would be if the root was complete.

 

The tooth in your pics is now half tooth, half art - not what a collector is looking for.

 

My attached pic is one example I've bought from him (it's 136mm / 5.3") and it's not even close to the nicest I've got from him. The lingual side does have a little enamel peel but no fossil is perfect. Imperfections are expected..... I see no reason to "fix" them. 

Indonesian teeth typically have very nice crowns and very eroded (or non existent) roots. 
PM me if you want his contact details... and no, he's not paying me to say this haha. Good people deserve potential business pointed their way though. 

 

 

[aeon.rocks]

Ledge teeth are junk in terms of quality for any serious meg tooth collector: tons of them found each year with worn edges (almost no serations), worn/broken tips, eroded bourlette, dull colors etc. - if only they were very cheap, but are not! You simply can't compare Indonesian land found teeth with Ledge teeth. And I'm not a fan of advertising Indo megs to beginners, due to fake root problem, but there are many decent Indos with real roots in the market, you just need to know what to look for. Ledge teeth I would completely advise against however. Sure, they are real, because they are so common and mostly so worn, that it's no point to fake them. The Ledge meg in pic above is decent for a Ledge tooth, not an amazing condition tho and I'ld love to see the other side. Imho, even if you are just gonna buy one meg, buy a good one... [removed seller recommendation].. He's a well known diver and sells nice GA megs in all price ranges...

 

Regarding the Indo tooth above - I agree, root is fake and exaggerated to make the tooth look larger! I would avoid at all costs. There are many more natural megs out there to chose from...

Edited December 28, 2023 by Kane
removed seller recommendation

[Fossildude19]

On 12/28/2023 at 4:21 AM, Gareth_ said:

I buy regularly from one seller in the USA. He sells mostly ledge teeth, some are not in great condition but some are in amazing condition.

My attached pic is one example I've bought from him (it's 136mm / 5.3") and it's not even close to the nicest I've got from him.

PM me if you want his contact details... and no, he's not paying me to say this haha. Good people deserve potential business pointed their way though.

 

 

Reminder that we are here to talk about fossils.

NOT DEALERS! 

Please keep comments about dealers to PMs.

[Gareth_]

On 12/28/2023 at 11:00 PM, aeon.rocks said:

Ledge teeth are junk in terms of quality for any serious meg tooth collector: tons of them found each year with worn edges (almost no serations), worn/broken tips, eroded bourlette, dull colors etc. - if only they were very cheap, but are not! You simply can't compare Indonesian land found teeth with Ledge teeth. And I'm not a fan of advertising Indo megs to beginners, due to fake root problem, but there are many decent Indos with real roots in the market, you just need to know what to look for. Ledge teeth I would completely advise against however. Sure, they are real, because they are so common and mostly so worn, that it's no point to fake them. The Ledge meg in pic above is decent for a Ledge tooth, not an amazing condition tho and I'ld love to see the other side. Imho, even if you are just gonna buy one meg, buy a good one... [removed seller recommendation].. He's a well known diver and sells nice GA megs in all price ranges...

 

Regarding the Indo tooth above - I agree, root is fake and exaggerated to make the tooth look larger! I would avoid at all costs. There are many more natural megs out there to chose from...

 

A lot of them are not "collector quality", but define "collector".  Not everyone is in to collecting high end quality Meg teeth from desirable locations - cost is a big factor there. One person that buys teeth from me prefers the dinged up, imperfect teeth. Each collector is different and some may prefer quality over quantity.
Many ledge teeth are recovered in very good condition too, so while a lot aren't in the best condition ledge teeth shouldn't be dismissed as non collectible based on the fact that some are bad. Sometimes the colours on ledge teeth are like nothing else. A lot are similar colours though. 
Th OP comes across as a beginner.... expecting some imperfections and unsure how to spot restoration.... which is why a ledge tooth is a good starting point. The chances of being scammed by a dodgy tooth is very low, plenty of choice, plenty of quality options, reasonable prices (if you know where to look).

Indonesia produces some of the nicest colours on Meg teeth and some of the nicest teeth on the planet.... but also some of the dodgiest art pieces called teeth come from there.... a novice may find it hard to tell the difference so you've absolutely correct... an Indo tooth typically isn't for a novice. 

It's hard to say "if you are just gonna buy one meg, buy a good one" because that one might be just testing the water to potentially buy more, what is "good"?, budget? etc. The OP is almost certainly going to need to factor in shipping costs which aren't cheap. It's easy to spend north of US$1k on a Meg tooth but that isn't for everyone. I've managed to accumulate a nice collection of Meg (and other) shark teeth without spending too much on each, meaning I have a mix of qualities and sizes from a small posterior tooth from Florida to a 5.6" ledge tooth. 
Below are a couple of pics of ledge teeth.... the other side is equally as nice (I'm just too lazy to edit my details out of the other pics as I had to do on these 2 pics), the serrations are sharp, very nice preservation etc. Obviously they're not perfect and high end collectors wouldn't bother (understandably) but to a beginner collector, it would be difficult to say no to something like these.

 

Edited December 29, 2023 by Gareth_

[Gareth_]

22 hours ago, Fossildude19 said:

 

 

Reminder that we are here to talk about fossils, NOT DEALERS! 

Please keep comments about dealers to PMs.

Sorry! I went off on a bit too much of a tangent there