Scientists have managed to find a cache of fossilized shark teeth in an area where it shouldn’t belong. The fossils were extracted from a 2900-year-old site within the City of David in Jerusalem. The researchers said that the shark teeth were discovered at least 80 km away from they would be expected to be found.
They have no explanation for why the cache was assembled, but they believe the fossilized shark teeth could have been assembled by someone in ancient times. While the discovery was made in the City of David that was 2900 years old, the fossilized teeth are said to be around 80 million years old.
Teeth were found with bones
The team also found out similar unexplained fines and other parts of ancient Judea. Researchers working on the project believe that the fossils were moved from their original setting. They said the teeth could have been valuable to someone, but they have no explanation for similar items that were found at places across Israel.
The fossilized teeth were found buried in the material used to fill in a basement before Iron-Age houses. The home was located in relatively older parts of Jerusalem in the City of David. The city was discovered in the Palestinian village of Silwan.
The shark teeth were found with fish bones thrown away as waste 2,900 years ago. Hundreds of bullae were also found in the same area. These items were used to seal confidential letters and packages, hinting at a connection with the governance of that time.
No evidence to prove hypothesis
The researchers on the project said they first assumed the shark teeth were the remains of the food waste nearly 3,000 years ago. However, after the submission of their paper, a reviewer noted that one of the teeth could only belong to the Late Cretaceous shark that has been extinct for at least 66 million years.
Further analysis confirmed that all teeth were around 80 million years old. Besides, all 29 fossils were unearthed at a location from the Late Cretaceous. The team believes that collectors gathered the teeth, but have no conclusive evidence to prove so.
