8.1" Fossil Oreodont (Merycoidodon) Skull - South Dakota

This is a large, 8.1" long skull of an Oreodont (Merycoidodon culbertsoni). It was collected from the White River Formation in Pennington County, South Dakota and would be approximately 30-35 million years old.

The majority of the teeth on this specimen are natural. The right, upper canine tooth has been entirely restored and the premolar adjacent to it is heavily fractured/repaired. The incisors of the mandible appear to be natural, however the restoration of the bone just beneath them makes me uncertain as to whether they're natural or composite. The right zygomatic arch is surprisingly intact, requiring no restoration. The left however, required some restoration in multiple spots. The angles of both the left and right side of the mandible have been restored, with restoration continuing up to the mandibular condyle on the left side. Portions of the nuchal crest have undergone restoration, however, the bone of the skull is natural up to the protrusions of the nuchal crest.

Following prep, a rock-like material was placed into the open cavities where rock had been removed (beneath left zygomatic arch, behind incisors of lower jaw and between left and right sides of the mandible).

Comes with a display stand.