Albertosaurus sarcophagus premax tooth 1.1" (2.75 cm), Drumheller, Alberta, Canada (disposition #001590)

Here is a special, 1.1" (2.75cm) long Albertosaurus sarcophagus premaxilla tooth from the Drumheller area of Alberta, Canada 

Don't let the smaller size fool you. This is a tooth from the front of the upper jaw (premaxilla) of an Albertosaurus, often referred to as a "premax tooth". Premax teeth can be identified by their unusual flat face with a parallel row of serrations (denticles) and "D-shaped" basal cross-section. Unlike the larger, blade-like cheek (side) teeth, premax teeth are comparatively much smaller even in a full-size adult. Thus, a tooth of the size shown here is still from a large predator that may have had much longer cheek teeth. More importantly, within the jaw there are only four premax teeth per side out of a total of 58 teeth in the typical Albertosaur, which make premax teeth much more rare. This particular tooth is complete with minor natural wear on the tip and no repairs or restorations.

The specimen rests on Styrofoam base within a golden box accompanied by a label reading “Dinosaur Tooth, Drumheller, Alta”. These particular golden boxes were used by Green's Rock & Lapidary in Calgary back in the late 1960s-early 1970s to sell dinosaur teeth prior to the introduction of fossil legislation in Alberta. Harvey purchased this tooth from Green's during that time period.

The rocks exposed in this area are from the Horseshoe Canyon Formation (believed to be 68 - 73.1 million years old). The only formally-recognized large theropod from this formation is Albertosaurus sarcophagus, which was a very large meat-eating dinosaur that could grow up to 9 meters (30 feet) long, weighing just over 1 ton. There were over 50 serrated, sharp teeth in its giant 1 meter long skull! Pre-dating Tyrannosaurus rex by several million years, it was smaller than T. rex but the apex predator of its day.

More about Alberta theropod dinosaurs

Legal Status: This specimen is legally available for private ownership and resale under Alberta Disposition Certificate #001590. A copy of the disposition documentation will accompany the specimen. Learn more about Alberta fossils and the disposition process.

Species: Albertosaurus sarcophagus
Age: Late Cretaceous (Campanian to early Maastrichtian or 68-73.1 million years ago)
Formation: Horseshoe Canyon Formation (Edmonton Group)
Locality: Red Deer River valley, Drumheller area, Alberta, Canada
Dimensions: Tooth size: 2.75 x 1 cm
Provenance: Green's Rock & Lapidary (Calgary); Harvey Negrich
Alberta Disposition Certificate Number: 001590 (specimen #HN993) issued July 7, 2026