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SUPER RARE GIANT VELOCIRAPTORINE "RAPTOR" HAND CLAW FROM HELL CREEK, UNITED STATES Hell Creek - Butte County, South Dakota, U.S.A. LATE CRETACEOUS PERIOD: 96 - 66 million years ago This is an exceptionally large and very rare hand (manus) claw from a large Velociraptorine dromaeosaur "raptor" dinosaur. Dinosaur claws are the most requested and in-demand fossil. No other fossil has such promising investment potential or appreciable value as does a claw. Claws are far more rare than teeth and most claws seen on the market are more restoration than real... especially large claws! If you are contemplating investing in a large genuine raptor claw, this is one rare opportunity. With its superb surface detail and hue, you will be hard-pressed to find any other specimen to compare to this valuable and important example. Without a doubt, a raptor claw is the most sought-after fossil amongst all dinosaur fossil collectors regardless of how advanced they are. Fossil claws of high quality preservation and size coming from the famous Hell Creek deposit in the United States are probably the most rare and therefore, the most valuable. Large fine grade carnivorous dinosaur claws from Hell Creek are definitely high yield investments as well as show-stopping specimens. For its astonishing array of dangerous and large prehistoric predator fossils, no place has captured more attention or has been featured on television more than Hell Creek! With most raptor fossils being found in Hell Creek the size of a small dog, some remains of very large raptor dinosaurs, as large or larger than Velociraptor have been recently discovered there. A giant hand claw such as this would have placed this Velociraptorine raptor at a size just LARGER than the famous Velociraptors found in China and featured on every Jurassic Park film. The hand claws of the raptor were used by the creature to rip open flesh and hold on to its unfortunate victims as it kicked and eviscerated its prey with its killing claw. Most hand claws found from dromaeosaurs are a fraction of this massive specimen. On very rare occasions, teeth are found indicating a Velociraptorine dinosaur of proportions even larger than Velociraptor variants of Mongolia existed in North America in the Late Cretaceous. This is the second time we have ever been so fortunate to secure such a specimen with Hell Creek provenance!!! This specimen has a approximately 20% restoration limited to a small portion of the tip and the proximal end. WARNING:
We are seeing more and more claws that have been
expertly reconstructed and restored being sold as "no restoration
or repair". Very impressive dinosaur fossil claws
occasionally come up on the market with extraordinarily high quality workmanship
in fabrication and repair. These expertly repaired
and restored claws can fool all but the most trained eye and anyone that
does not actually have extensive experience in fossil restoration,
repair and preparation will likely not be able to tell the
difference. These claws are being sold at shows and on the
internet as having "NO REPAIR and/or NO RESTORATION" which is
simply untrue but the ignorance of the seller is just repeating what the
former supplier told them without their own ability to discern if any
work was truly performed on the claw. It is IMPERATIVE
to ONLY deal with a very knowledgeable dealer who has
considerable, first-hand personal experience with all facets of
fossil fabrication, restoration and repair in order to avoid becoming a
victim of the ignorance and fraud that unfortunately plagues this
business. Paleo Direct, Inc. operates a fully-equipped preparation
lab and we perform all our own work on the dinosaur claw specimens we
sell, enabling us to accurately disclose to our clients, an assessment
of the work performed.
Recent discoveries in China have shown feathered species existed. This has revolutionized paleontologists' view of what not only these creatures could have looked like when alive, but of possible plumage on other therapod dinosaurs. Dromaeosaurs share other characteristics with birds and theories now place these vicious predators as being the earliest ancestors of birds. Dromaeosaurs first evolved in the Early Cretaceous and survived right up to the end of the Late Cretaceous suggesting they were adaptable and capable hunters, surviving such a prolonged period yet, remaining virtually unchanged in overall design.
FOSSIL CLAWS OF THIS GRADE FROM THE FAMOUS HELL CREEK FORMATION IN THE U.S.A. ARE AMONGST THE MOST IN-DEMAND FOSSILS OF ALL - THE PINNACLE OF A COLLECTION!!! 3" long! on the dorsal curve SOLD DC6-011 INCLUDES DISPLAY BOX Actual Item - One Only |
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CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE DROMAEOSAUR "RAPTOR" FOSSILS FOR SALE |
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Velociraptor courtesy of MINEO SHIRAISHI and used with permission. This image is protected by copyright. |
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The
dromaeosaurs are popularly known (especially in the movie "Jurassic
Park") as "raptors", a group of fascinating extinct
creatures. Raptors ranged in size from the size of a small dog
on
up to 30 feet long! They are therapods that possessed specialized
features: a well-developed slashing talon on their second toe, a stiffened
tail, and large grasping hands.
The
"killing claw" of raptors was a terrifying and incredibly
efficient weapon. As they moved, it was held off the ground.
When the muscles of the toe were contracted, the claw swept down
quickly, providing for a powerful slash that may have been able to
disembowel prey swiftly. The stiffened tail would have been good
to stabilize the body while the grasping arms and jaws held onto the
prey for balance. Although there is no conclusive evidence for
this, it has been suggested that raptors could have performed leaps onto
large prey and used all four limbs to rip wounds in them. 
Raptors
were ferocious predators that some scientists believe hunted in packs
and attacked much larger dinosaurs by slashing their underbellies.
It is also believed that they were similar to lions in predatory
behavior, preferring ambushes and quick chases using their high
maneuverability along with strategic pack-hunting tactics. A human
could be torn to shreds by a pack of raptors in less than 30
seconds. 