Mt. Blanco Four Tusk Mastodon

GIANT 4-TUSKED MASTODON
FINALLY UNVEILED!

The LONE STAR MASTODON came home to SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS on December 5th, 2005 where the Mt. Blanco Museum and a group of friends who worked on this project were gathered to reintroduce the world's largest known mastodon to its old stomping grounds.

The real skull is back on display here at the Mt. Blanco Fossil Museum in Crosbyton, Texas and if you were unable to make it to the unveiling, come see it at Mt. Blanco Fossil Museum 124 West Main, Crosbyton, Texas.

It is for sale. We have called it the million dollar mastodon for fun and indeed it is ten times rarer than anything like it, but we will sell it and Mt. Blanco Sales will be glad to consider any reasonable offer. Call Tom or Kathy Taylor at 806-789-2493 or the museum at 806-675-7777. Fax 806-675-2421. E-mail:

After a year and a half and thousands of hours, this one-of-a-kind world class specimen rose from its sandy grave in the Colorado River at La Grange, Texas, and with a lot of help, regained some of its former glory.

The unveiling event was unique in itself, on a par with other major fossil unveilings.

A sculpture was commissioned for the event. Sean Cooper's fabulous recreation is a stunning piece of work. The first bronze of it is at the foundry now.

A documentary film short was made. A DVD player is disguised as a name plaque on the base of the skull.

An orchestral piece was commissioned for the film short.

A display of other fossils found with it was created as a separate display piece. It will go with the real skull to its permanent home.

The braincase of the skull is lighted by a tiny LED. This has never been done before.

The hollow root cavity of the right tusk is lighted by an LED. It looks like an ice cave inside! Appropriate for this King of the Ice Age.

The skull of the Burning Tree Mastodon, which is considered to be one of the largest mastodons, was on display at the unveiling to show just how big this new one is. Plus, the Burning Tree specimen is not even a 4-tusker.

A book was written on the transformation of Lone Star from its shattered pieces as they were found by the gravel pit operator. It was documented through every phase.

Our favorite harpist, Chantel Lines, who worked on removing the extremely hard matrix, was beautiful in a long evening dress and graced the unveiling by accompanying on the harp during removal of the veil.

And two lovely sisters, in stunning dresses made for the occasion, Callie and Linsey Gavin, came all the way from New York State, to do the honors of drawing the long black veil off the skull while Chantel played. The Gavin girls and their dad also worked on the preparation of Lone Star.

Family and friends joined the press and Mt. Blanco staff at the Hilton Hotel on Blanco Road in the Lone Star ballroom to unveil the Lone Star Mastodon. We thought the tie-in was fun and everybody had a great time with the friendly staff at the Hilton. Something very interesting, though unrelated, happened while we were there. A young Mexican lady told us a really intriguing story of two of her friends being attacked by a "giant bird with no feathers" in a village in Mexico. We hope to do a full story on this later on. Keep posted.

Come See Lone Star
The World's Largest Four-Tusked Mastodon!

10-4-2005

This skull is over 15% larger than the Burning Tree Mastodon. The Burning Tree Mastodon has been considered a large male mastodon....up till now. We set the Burning Tree Mastodon skull next to Big Tex (as we have dubbed him) and we were shocked! I have lived with the Burning Tree Mastodon skull for the last 14 years and have always thought it was a big skull. But it was not till we set them side by side that I saw the difference. Check back for photos of Big Tex.

From San Antonio, Texas USA
Very impressive, it is huge
Lower jaws virtually complete
Both tusks still in lower jaws

Lower Jaw

5-25-2005
As restoration and mounting of this unique world-class skull nears completion, its value is rising, with speculations of an appraised value exceeding $300,000.

Joe Taylor and his staff have been working on this amazing piece for over a year. "I have spent nearly six months on it myself, Taylor said." What's taking so long? “The skull is huge, as far as we know the largest found yet. It is certainly the largest from Texas and the only one that has even been available.”

When Taylor recovered it from a workshop floor in San Antonio, it was resting upside down on its face and was so heavy that it was flattening the huge truck tire under it. "Just getting it into my truck to bring it home was heart-stopping. Then the whole trip back to the museum was during a snowstorm. It took me a long time just to figure out how to turn the beast's skull over to an upright position so we could see the face and work on it. A huge contraption was attached to it and it rolled over without even a chip."

Removing the matrix from it has taken a year. Some areas of the calcium cemented sand and gravel were as hard as granite. In many places, using a pencil-sized jackhammer called a Chicago pneumatic, it would take all day to remove an area the size of an orange. The bone is mostly replaced but it is softer than the rock around it making the work all the more tedious.

In order to mount the skull and jaws they first had to be molded. This had to be done in place and restoration of parts underneath had to be done working on it upside down. The jaws alone are so heavy that it takes two men to lift one side. The metal work for the base and jaws was done using a cast of them.

"You only get one chance when moving this thing, said Taylor, so every possible problem has to be fully solved beforehand." When finished, he estimates the skull and jaws will weigh as much as 700 lbs. Huge mammoth skulls from Alaska only weigh a few hundred pounds.

"We finally got the tusks set on it this week (May-24-05). That was no easy job. And when we turn it right side up again on its permanent base, they may have to be adjusted. This will take several more days to do, but there is no other way Taylor explained."

Joe spent five months in 1995 restoring and molding the famous Burning Tree Mastodon from Ohio and has just finished the big Wapple Bope mastodon dig in Indiana.

"This big 4-tusker is different in many respects from the Burning Tree. I think there's a possibility that they were separate species, Taylor speculates."

Restored by Joe Taylor with unique features
Complete dentition
Buyers please call Joe Taylor (806)675-7777
Other animals with it also available
To be unveiled in May, 2005