Now this is something truly special!
This is a beautiful partial Ceratopsian brow horn from either the infamous American three horned dinosaur Triceratops or the similar but even larger Torosaurus from the Hell Creek Formation of Powder River County, Montana, USA! The piece measures 7.8 inches (19.81 cm) long with fantastic preservation of the blood grooves and no repair or restoration! What makes this already fantastic piece even more special though, is the presence of a carnivorous dinosaur tooth imbedded in the blood grooves! the tooth came from Richardoestesia a small carnivorous dinosaur, about the size of a large dog, that lived alongside these Ceratopsians! The tooth has great serrations and measures .18 inches (4.5 mm)! It is very unlikely that the presence of the tooth was a part of an attempted hunt on the Ceratopsian, but instead was deposited alongside the horn and the two fossilized right on top of each other. Not a direct relationship, but still a wonderful piece of paleontology showing the association between these two dinosaurs! This is a truly museum quality piece worthy of display in any fossil collection!
Ceratopsians, also known as “Horned Dinosaurs”, are plant eating dinosaurs that had boney frills on the back of their heads, parrot like beaks, and often (but not always) horns. The most famous of which is the Three Horned Triceratops. Triceratops was one of the most prolific dinosaurs of Late Cretaceous North America. These massive herbivores, nearly 30 feet long and ten tons, and roamed in large herds 66 million years ago. Its most striking features were the large frill and three large horns, one on its snout and two on its brow, that adorned its head. The brow horns could reach up to four feet in length and the frill three feet across! While Triceratops was a sight to behold on its own evidence suggests that it had a contemporary, another Three Horned Ceratopsian that was even bigger called Torosaurus! Torosaurus is a rather unusual genus of dinosaur. Fossils are very rare and indicate it would have been very similar to Triceratops, but bigger and with large holes in its frill whose purpose is unknown. Many paleontologists believe that Torosaurus are simply very large mature Triceratops and that they develop the holes in their frill as they age, while many others argue that Torosaurus represents a different genus.
Richardoestesia is a very mysterious dinosaur. Known as a "tooth taxon" the only remains of this species found in Hell Creek are teeth, leaving a lot of speculation as to the nature of this animal. The teeth tend to be small but long and sharp, indicating it was a small carnivorous dinosaur. It is believed to be about the size of a large dog. Although often referred to as a raptor, it isn't believed to be a true raptor.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT TRICERATOPS: Traditionally any large Ceratopsian remains from the Hell Creek are simply labeled "Triceratops". This is due to the debate around Torosaurus, it's validity as a different species, and that even as a legitimate species it is SUBSTANTIALLY rarer than Triceratops to the point that the overwhelming majority of such material would be identified as Triceratops if possible. However, because of the chance that Torosaurus is a valid species and the inability to tell apart isolated teeth/bones between these two I will be labeling these fossils as "Ceratopsian, Triceratops or Torosaurus" (or just Triceratops type because the two were so similar) to cover all bases.
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Species: Horn: Ceratopsian: Triceratops or Torosaurus, Tooth: Richardoestesia sp.
Size: 7.8 Inches (19.81 cm) (Horn), .18 Inches (4.5 mm) (Tooth)
Found: Powder River County, Montana
Formation: Hell Creek Formation
Age: 68-66 million years old
Repair: None