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Prince George Receives Ancient Shark Tooth as Gift But Malta’s Culture Minister Wants It Back

Whoops! Sir David Attenborough may have given Prince William and Duchess Kate ’s son Prince George a shark tooth, but Malta’s culture minister wants it back.

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“There are some artifacts that are important to Maltese natural heritage and which ended up abroad and deserve to be retrieved,” Jose Herrera told the Times of Malta on Monday, September 28.

Herrera went on to tell the outlet that the tooth should be in a local museum, and he planned to “set the ball rolling” to get it back.

 

Prince George Receives Ancient Shark Tooth as Gift But Malta Culture Minister Wants it Back
Prince George Photo by The Duchess of Cambridge/Shutterstock

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His comments came two days after the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, both 38, shared photos from their visit with Attenborough, 94. Not only did the historian screen his upcoming film David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet, but he gave the couple’s eldest son a present as well.

“When they met, Sir David gave Prince George a tooth from a giant shark, the scientific name of which is carcharocles megalodon (‘big tooth’),” the royals’ Saturday, September 26, Instagram post read. “Sir David found the tooth on a family holiday to Malta in the late 1960s, embedded in the island’s soft yellow limestone which was laid down during the Miocene period some 23 million years ago. Carcharocles is believed to have grown to 15 meters in length, which is about twice the length of the Great White, the largest shark alive today.”

The 7-year-old held the tooth in the social media upload, excitedly showing it to his dad and little brother, Prince Louis, 2.

Prince Louis Shark Tooth Prince George William
Kensington Palace/Shutterstock

George, who looked enthralled with the fossil, is also a big fan of tractors and sports. William said his son was “obsessed” with the vehicles in an October 2019 documentary, then joked that George was destined to be Aston Villa’s “all-time leading goal scorer” in a July 2020 “That Peter Crouch Podcast” episode.

Related: Prince George's Grumpiest Faces

William and Kate are also the parents of daughter Princess Charlotte, and the 5-year-old is “extremely confident,” a source exclusively told Us Weekly in December 2019. “[She] loves attention. Although Charlotte’s much bossier than George, she looks up to him. They squabble over small things like toys.”

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