Natural History
Natural History
The Brow Horn of a Triceratops
Lot Closed
December 3, 07:09 PM GMT
Estimate
15,000 - 25,000 USD
Lot Details
Description
The Brow Horn of a Triceratops
Triceratops horridus
Late Cretaceous (approx. 66 million years ago)
Hell Creek Formation, Harding County, South Dakota
Large supraorbital horn, 28½ by 10½ by 7 inches (72.4 x 26.7 x 17.8 cm). 29 inches tall on custom stand. 37 pounds (16.8 kg).
Excellent condition preserving natural surface detail of the bone. The shaft displays clear and numerous deep branching grooves and pits which once housed nutrient canals and foramina that supplied blood to the outer horn sheath. The core of the horn shows no distortion or erosion, with only minor restoration at the base.
The herbivorous Triceratops (aka "three-horned face") is undoubtedly one of the world's best-known and most popular dinosaurs, due in great part to their distinctive bony frills, keratinous parrot beaks, and three-horned skulls. Weighing upwards of 11 tons and fearsome in appearance, their horns were long-considered to serve a primarily defensive function, though recent theories suggest that the horns were more likely used in intraspecific courtship and/or dominance displays.
Whether for fighting or for flirting, this beautiful specimen is a fundamental piece of one of the most iconic dinosaurs of all time.