I got my second modern Great White Shark tooth today. It is the one on the right in the picture. The tooth on the left was bought last summer and it is 57 mm on its longest side. That one came from a 17 foot Great White. The new tooth is 62 mm on its longest side and it came from a 19 foot Great White, making it rare. The closer a tooth gets to 69.9 mm the greater its rarity and value. The alleged record for the largest modern Great White tooth is 69.85 mm.
Those are some impressive teeth! Would hate to see them coming at me in large numbers. I am going to check my air tank and rifle right now...just in case!
I see it this way: if you are going to collect GWS teeth settle for nothing smaller than 2 inches. Great White's are a protected animal so the larger the tooth the more valuable it is. if you want a large tooth you have to wait until a shark loses one or dies by accident. e.g. caught in fishing net unintentionally. There are serious fines if you kill GWS for the teeth or fins. The price for GWS teeth increase by the millimeter. And each millimeter can cost from the mid hundreds to the high thousands. I have spent the combined total of about $1,000 for these teeth. The seller is also dependant on the price because some will charge a few hundred more than another seller selling a tooth for the same size. My new tooth is 62mm and I paid close to $750 for it. The seller I bought from was more reasonable in the price. The largest tooth ever sold was 69.85mm and a buyer paid $10,000 for it.
$10,000?!?!?! It's almost worth letting a great white bite you and lose a tooth in your flesh for that amount! Got a few shark tooth fossils around the house somewhere. I'll take a look for them to contribute to the thread.
Nice Meg! That looks to be about 5+ inches? The other tooth is from Otodus; another prehistoric shark.
Actually almost 4" on the nose..... or should I say in the mouth? It wasn't the biggest for sale, but it was in the nicest condition. Never knew that - just bought it 'cause it was cool. Are these things really worth money? More like pointed and jagged.
BTW, for our viewers knowledge, the tooth on the left is a lateral or side tooth, the one on the right appears to be a front tooth. Both look like uppers.
Cicindela: Renaissance man, watch collector, and dentist extraordinaire for the carcharodon carcharias of the world.
I think more collectors will look at Megalodon teeth (particularly ones in good condition) for purchase because they are the ancestor to Great White's and the size of some of them is amazing. The problem is they are easily available. Modern Great White teeth are considered more prized because they are a protected species. But remember what I said, though. The larger the tooth the more it is held by collectors.