Cave bear skull "Ursus spelaeus"
The cave bear, or "Ursus spelaeus" was a massive omnivore that lived in Europe during the Pleistocene period and became extinct around 27,000 years ago. This enormous animal is thought to be a relative to todays brown bear but it was significantly larger. When standing on it's hind legs Ursus spelaeus would average over 10 feet tall! That would put them in size with the largest of modern day Kodiak and Polar bears.
Unlike other bears which used their caves mainly for hibernation, Cave bears apparently spent much more time in their caves. It's not uncommon to find the fossilized skeletal remains of several cave bear families, from different time periods, in the same cave.
This museum quality skull from Romania measures an impressive 15" in length, 7-1/2" in width from cheek bone to cheek bone, and it stands ~8-1/2" from it's lower jaw to the top of it's crown.
As you know, we pride ourselves on obtaining only top quality specimens and this beautiful skull is no exception.
