Primitive Whale - Fossil tooth - 7.5 cm - 3 cm (No reserve price)

Fossil tooth of Basilosaurus, an extinct genus of archaeocete cetaceans (primitive whales) that lived during the late Eocene, about 40 to 34 million years ago. Visible features of the fossil: Tooth crown: The upper part has a triangular shape typical of the molars and premolars of this marine predator. The edge is characterized by several sharp cusps or serrations along the sides, which helped it seize and slice its prey (mollusks, fish). Root system: The specimen has long, clearly distinct mineralized roots (a double or multiple structure) separated by an empty space, a major anatomical feature of mammals compared with marine reptiles such as mosasaurs (which have a single, massive, conical root). Color and texture: The color ranges from dark brown to ochre beige, reflecting the fossilization process and the replacement of organic tissues by mineral sediments. This type of fossil very frequently comes from Morocco's phosphate deposits (the Dakhla region or the Ouled Abdoun Basin).