The tooth of a giant sea creatureOtodus(Megaselachus) in the material culture of Neolithic maritime hunter‐gatherers at Sharbithat (Sultanate of Oman)

Abstract

AbstractA mega‐tooth belonging to a Miocene fossil shark was discovered along the shores of the Arabian Sea inside one of the Neolithic domestic settlements at Sharbithat (SHA‐10) (Sultanate of Oman). Attributed to a representative of the extinct genusOtodus(Megaselachus), this tooth is the first ever discovered in the Arabian Peninsula. In the field, research permitted the localization and study, a few kilometres away, of the palaeontological deposit where this retrieval was made. The shark, traditionally extensively hunted on the shores of the Arabian Sea, is well attested in the region's Neolithic ichthyological assemblages. Moreover, during this period, some groups of seaborne hunters were specialized in this form of fishing, which was indeed quite dangerous. But why did an individual some 5,500 years ago collect this curio, an unusual fossil, but also one he could easily recognize? The fossils of large sharks sometimes played an important part in ancient societies. Could this also have been the case in South‐Eastern Arabia?