The Full Tooth of a Tyrannosaurus rex, Complete with Root

No animal elicits the combination of fascination, fear, and reverence like that of the "tyrant lizard king", Tyrannosaurus rex.

Dominating the western landscape of late Cretaceous North America, T. rex's five foot long skull was packed with 60 teeth and featured a bone-crushing bite force of nearly 13,000 pounds (5,900 kg) per square inch, the strongest of any terrestrial animal ever. In comparison to other carnivorous theropods, T. rex teeth are proportionately huge. Robust and thick enameled crowns strengthened dozens of teeth with serrations on two different edges like double-sided steak knives. The unrivaled power of this 40 foot (12.2 m) long, 16,000 pound (7,260 kg) apex predator allowed it to hunt virtually every large dinosaur in its environment, including Triceratops, Ankylosaurus, Ornithomimus, Pachycephalosaurus, Edmontosaurus, and even other tyrannosaurs.

Full T. rex teeth—with complete root, crown, and tip—are exceedingly rare. The massive root structure of these teeth are a stark and immediate reminder of the overwhelming strength of the greatest terrestrial carnivore of all time.