Malta says it will seek to retrieve a shark tooth that was presented to Britain’s Prince George by veteran broadcaster and naturalist David Attenborough, who found the fossil during a holiday on the Mediterranean island in the 1960s.
Culture Minister Jose Herrera said he will “get the ball rolling” to bring back the tooth to be exhibited in a Maltese museum.
“There are some artifacts that are important to natural heritage which ended up abroad and deserve to be retrieved,” he told the Times of Malta.
In this Thursday, Sept. 24, 2020 photo released by Kensington Palace, Britain's Prince William and Prince Louis react as Prince George holds the tooth of a giant shark given to him by Naturalist Sir David Attenborough in the gardens of Kensington Palace in London after Prince William joined Attenborough for an outdoor screening of his upcoming film - David Attenborough: A Life On Our Planet. (Kensington Palace via AP)
The fossil, believed to be around 3 million years old, belonged to an extinct species of a giant shark that could grow up to 16 meters (about 50 feet), three times the size of modern great white sharks.
Attenborough, 94, presented the fossil to Prince George during a private viewing of his new documentary at Kensington Palace.
Photos released by the palace over the weekend showed the 7-year-old prince looking intrigued as he looked at the tooth. Malta is a former British colony that obtained independence in 1964.
In this undated handout photo issued by WWF on Saturday, Sept. 26, 2020, British Naturalist Sir David Attenborough, sits with Prince William for a private outdoor screening of his upcoming film, David Attenborough: A Life On Our Planet, at Kensington Palace, London.(WWF via AP)
Kensington Palace declined to comment.