Hippo skull headed home

Feb 23, 2006

Jason Clarke, Staff Writer, The Express-Star

The owner of the hippo skull has been found.

Chickasha Lumber Company manager Steve Smart said the news coverage surrounding their shipment of gloves that included the skull of a hippopotamus has connected them with the organization that sold the piece.

Smart said the skull belongs to Skulls Unlimited International out of Oklahoma City.

According to his contact with the company, Smart said the skull shipment was on its way to Hawaii via FedEx when it was lost in Arizona on Feb. 2. He said the company had already gotten parts of the lower jaw back in pieces, but had not found the top of the skull.

A FedEx representative is supposed to appear in Chickasha today to hand carry the skull back to Oklahoma City.

Smart said he was informed by Skulls Unlimited that the complete skull was sold for $2,400.

Skulls Unlimited International began as a hobby for company president Jay Villemarette and became a successful retail and mail order business 1990.

Villemarette said the company has earned a reputation with prestigious museums and educational facilities around the world for have the largest variety of bone specimens with the best quality and most professional service.

The company is currently building a museum of their own in Oklahoma City. Phase two of the Museum of Osteology is set to be complete in the summer of 2006, with the third and final phase to be constructed after that.