196 
BRITISH FOSSIL ELEPHANTS. 
remarkable character in this fragment of an upper molar is its breadth of crown, which 
exceeds any of the broad-crowned variety of E. antiquus; the largest of E. primigenius I 
have examined, being 4'9 inches in its maximum breadth. 
The bending of the plates backwards contrasts with just the reverse in No. 10 a, 
although both belong to the same side of the upper jaw. This shows that the character 
is of little use for diagnostic purposes. The above specimen displays external crimping 
on the anterior border of the machserides, but not affecting the entire thickness. 
The entire lower molar (No. 3, the Norwich Museum) from Thorpe, Norwich, 
was the specimen which first led Falconer to doubt the unity of species of the British 
Elephants, and is so far interesting. 1 It is a long and bent molar, with the crown 
scarcely more than touched by wear. The breadth of crown and the thickness of inter¬ 
vening wedges of cement are seldom so pronounced in the thick-plated and broad 
tooth of E. antiquus and its very low ridge formula x 11 x in 1L2X3'8 is quite 
remarkable as compared with the lowest expression of even the second true molar of E. 
antiquus. The configuration of the tooth appears to indicate the last of the series. There 
is no pressure-scar, or pronounced flattening posteriorly, which, however, could scarcely 
appear in its condition of wear. The crown tails off posteriorly, as in all last 
lower molars. These characters are decidedly in favour of its being that of a distinct 
form from either of the British species already described, and might well have produced 
doubts in the mind of one who had already differentiated the characters of its 
congeners from the Sewalik Hills. The crown fragment, referred to by Falconer, 2 
may be correlated with the other teeth with thick cement wedges ; but, besides the 
vertical channellings, it shows some crimping. It has, however, the general appearance of 
the E. meridional™; but, as in all broken teeth, one cannot always be certain of their 
diagnostic values, even in such a fragment as that shown in FI. XVIII, fig. 4, represent- 
ing a morsel of a huge molar (No. j^in the Jermyn Street Museum) from Mundesley, 
where it was dug out of the blue clay of the Forest Bed. Judging from this small 
portion, the original must have been, indeed, of enormous proportions. 
In Mr. Savin’s Collection at Cromer, is a large lower left molar (No. 43) holding 
fourteen ridges; besides a posterior talon there is a loss in front by detrition of not more 
than a ridge. It is 10x4 inches in breadth, and must have been a stupendous tooth. 
No. 12, Norwich Museum, is a superb right lower last molar covered with matrix 
from the Iron Pan, Forest Bed. It holds x 13 x in 11 X 3| inches. 
The crown is narrow and considerably arcuated, and has much the aspect of the 
narrow tooth of E. antiquus. The two anterior fangs support the first two ridges. All 
are invaded excepting the posterior talon. The discs are inseparable in character from 
the typical crown of E. meridionalis. It holds five ridges in 5J inches. 
1 Op. cit., vol. ii, p. 130, and pi. xiv b, figs. 18 and 18 a. 
2 ‘ F. A. S.,’ pi. xivB, figs. 11 and 11 a. 
