President Washington's dentures Mount Vernon Estate Museum |
Etruscans were so skilled at extracting decayed teeth and
replacing them with partial or full dentures, that they were renowned all over the ancient world. The bridgework was made from gold
and the teeth were carved from ivory, carefully resembling the original
tooth. If a person died, their good
teeth were removed and used in dentures for the upper classes.
In the medieval and Renaissance periods, the rich could
actually pay poor people to have teeth removed and then implanted in “gums” of
ivory. Women of the 1500s had their gums pierced with wires in order to secure
dentures or partials in place. In the 1600s uppers were kept in place by springs
that were so taut that pressure was necessary to keep the mouth shut. Not paying constant attention to these
springs could result in a mouth flying open uncontrollably.
The first realistic looking dentures were made by Parisian
doctors in the 19th century – they were durable porcelain teeth baked in one piece. Dr. Claudius
Ash adopted the procedure in America.
One gory practice had individuals collect the teeth of dead
soldiers from the battlefield; sometimes these soldiers were not really
dead thus the term “teeth robbers” was born. Many Europeans had dentures made with “Waterloo”
teeth and quite a few Americans had “Civil War”
teeth.
Porcelain teeth put an end to teeth robbery. The porcelain
teeth were embedded in vulcanized rubber. About the same time period, the practice of using nitrous
oxide or “laughing gas” for anesthesia made dentistry less painful.
It is always a good idea to take good care of your natural teeth, however, should that fail, you can thank Etruscans for inventing dentures and modern medicine for perfecting dentures and implants.
It is always a good idea to take good care of your natural teeth, however, should that fail, you can thank Etruscans for inventing dentures and modern medicine for perfecting dentures and implants.
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