Fossil shark teeth of various shapes and sizes. By Luca Oddone. Source: CC BY-SA 3.0.

Glossopetrae: From Tongue Stones to Shark Teeth

Imagine yourself stumbling upon a jagged triangular stone glinting in the Mediterranean sun, with its sharp edges hinting at a mysterious past. What you’ve just stumbled upon was once known as glossopetrae or “tongue stones”.  For centuries, people across Europe believed these objects were the petrified tongues of mythical serpents or dragons. Glossopetrae had been