. ■ 
SECTION ONE Sketches from Dental 
History 
Illustrated 
Section I 
Presented by 
1 he Palisade Manufacturing Co. 
*' ' Yonkers, N. Y. 
Makers of Borolyptol IT is a peculiar fact-and one to be regretted-that so 
little attention has been devoted to the History of 
Dentistry. Certainly, it deserves and demands more 
space than can be given in this little booklet. Dentistry 
as a Profession has made even more rapid progress than 
her sister, Medicine, and the achievements of its founders 
and exponents deserve more than passing mention. 
With complete realization of these facts and with a 
desire to recognize the right of every dentist to receive 
something different and more valuable than the ordinary 
prescription blanks, appointment cards, etc., etc., usually 
presented to the dentist by the manufacturer of some 
preparation suited for his use, The Palisade Manufacturing 
Co., Makers of Borolyptol, take pleasure in dedicating and 
presenting " Sketches from Dental History " to the dentists 
of America. 
Credit is hereby fully given, and acknowledgement 
made, of indebtedness to the editors and publishers of 
"History of Dentistry," by Thorpe, Koch, Gureni, and 
to numerous other dental articles and publications. 
The Palisade Manufacturing Co. 
Yonkers, N. Y. ST. APOLLONIA 
The Patron Saint of Dentistry INSTRUMENT USED BY AMBROISE PARE 
HHOSOEVER is curious or interested enough to seek in 
musty tomes of History the beginning of what are 
recognized today as the professions, must realize that 
_ Dentistry came into being as soon as primitive man 
first had his attention directed to his teeth. 
In determining the human character of prehistoric skulls found 
during excavating, the teeth are relied upon to furnish diagnostic 
evidence. There is a close resemblance between human teeth and 
those of the monkey, but a marked difference in the case of the canine 
and the first pre-molar teeth. 
Teeth found in prehistoric skulls do not as a rule show evidence 
of caries, and if it be present at all it is an evidence of considerable 
age. Signs of wear and tear are common. 
In the province of Esmeraldas in Ecuador, S. A., a number of 
skulls of Indians-who existed before the Incas-have been found, 
bearing teeth that show evidence of a high degree of art in prosthetic 
dentistry. Such teeth had been filled with cement or gold. Such 
filling was inside the tooth, showing that the cavity had been bored 
out with a tool. Several teeth were also found which had been 
fastened together with gold bands. 
According to Wilkinson, mummies have been found whose teeth 
had been filled with gold, but no specimen of such early dental filling 
on the part of the Egyptians is in existence. The earliest known arti- 
ficial denture is, however, evidently of Egyptian origin, but in this 
case, the artificial teeth were evidently inserted for cosmetic effect 
and were not intended as an aid to mastication. 
The first allusion to a dental operation other than extraction, is 
found in an account by Archigenes of Rome, who advocated the treph- 
ining of a tooth that ached without there being evidence of caries. 
His idea was, that the pain was caused by morbid material in the 
interior of the tooth, which by this means could be evacuated. 
Like Medicine, Dentistry was at first practiced by the priesthood, 
then became the plaything of the Quack and Charlatan, then was 
considered as a trade, to undergo evolution into what is today 6 
SKETCHES FROM DENTAL HISTORY 
recognized as a Science.and an Art, 
than which there is none higher or 
more worthy of respect. 
The beginning of Dentistry is 
shrouded in the mists of antiquity. 
In China, twenty-seven centuries 
before the Christian Era, the founder 
of Chinese medicine, the Emperor 
Howang-ty, wrote a treatise upon 
medicine, which devoted two chapters 
to dental subjects. The Chinese 
recognized nine kinds of toothache! 
Medicine for the relief of this was 
either inserted into the ear or the 
nostril! A favorite prescription was: 
"Roast a bit of garlic and crush 
it between the teeth-mix with 
chopped horseradish seeds-make into 
a paste with human milk-form pills 
and introduce one into the nostril on 
the opposite side to where the pain is 
felt"! 
It was also taught that tooth 
decay was caused by worms in the 
teeth. 
In Egypt, Dentistry was practiced 
by the priests. The Papyrus Ebers, 
which is claimed to date from the 4th 
Dynasty (3427 B. C.), contains several references to the care of the 
teeth and a number of prescriptions for toothache and gum-boil. 
One of these called for equal parts of a powder made from the fruit 
of the dum-palm, green lead and honey. 
Herodotus (500 B. C.) records in his history that dental art had 
made great progress and was practiced by specialists. 
"Thus Egypt is quite full of doctors-those for the eyes, those 
for the head, some for the teeth, others for the belly, or for occult 
maladies. " 
Egypt was the seat of culture and of learning, the loadstone that 
drew students from other lands in search of knowledge and skill. 
ETRUSCAN DENTISTRY SKETCHES FROM DENTAL HISTORY 
7 
Hither came the Phoenicians from 
the busy cities of Tyre and Sidon, 
and carried home with them 
newly acquired knowledge of 
dentistry, evidence of which has 
been discovered centuries later. 
The teeth have also been arti- 
ficially modified for cosmetic, re- 
ligious or other reasons. Certain 
tribes of India separate the per- 
manent teeth with a file, others 
bring all the teeth to a uniform 
level-in some cases, as in Suma- 
tra, almost even with the gums. 
Some African tribes file the teeth 
to a sharp point. The married 
women of Sumatra, Japan and the 
Maria Islands and the maidens of 
Java dye the teeth black. 
In Java and Macassar, arti- 
ficial teeth of gold or silver 
have long been known and a 
custom exists of covering cer- 
tain teeth with gold plate to 
contrast with those dyed black. 
The natives of the Sandwich Islands used to knock out their front 
teeth as a sacrifice to their God, Etoa, and the aborigines of New 
South Wales and certain tribes in Peru had their front teeth knocked 
out with stones on arriving at manhood. 
It is worthy of remark that neither the Bible nor the Talmud 
make any mention of dental medicine or surgery, although frequent 
references appear to the teeth. 
It is probable that much dental literature was collected in the 
great library at Alexandria. But the Saracens invaded and subju- 
gated Egypt in the 7th century and as a crowning piece of infamy 
devoted six months to destroying the hooks in the greatest library in 
the world. 
Famous Arabian physicians also possessed considerable knowledge 
of dentistry. 
PHCENICIAN DENTISTRY 
ARABIAN DENTAL INSTRUMENTS 8 
SKETCHES FROM DENTAL HISTORY 
instruments. He gave directions 
for cleaning and scaling the teeth 
with a set of some fourteen in- 
struments, mentioned the use of 
gold and silver for ligating the 
teeth and advised the replanting of 
teeth that had been lost by injury. 
Avicenna of Persia (1077) was 
known as "the second Galen"- 
also as the "Prince of Doctors." 
He advised that teeth that were 
too long should be filed down, 
and recommended that teeth be 
loosened instead of extracted, 
claiming that they would be the 
better for "a good shaking. " 
The Crusades served to send 
back to the western part of 
Europe considerable knowledge 
of the Arts and Sciences, among 
which dentistry had some place. 
PRIMITIVE DENTAL INSTRUMENTS 
Rhazes advised the filling of 
carious teeth with a "cement" 
composed of mastic and honey. 
Ali Abbas, for the relief of 
toothache, applied to the cavity 
of the tooth one end of a small 
metallic tube, into which were 
introduced red hot needles and 
allowed to cool! 
Albucasis wrote at length 
upon dental subjects and de- 
scribed a large number of dental 
GALEN 
Born at Pergamus, 130 A. D. A famous writer 
in medicine and dentistry SKETCHES FROM DENTAL HISTORY 
9 
The Greeks succeed- 
ed the Egyptians as con- 
server s and developers of 
learning and especially 
in the art of healing. 
Askelapios and Hip- 
pocrates devoted some 
space in their medical 
treatises and teaching to 
dental subj ects. Aris- 
totle also wrote exten- 
sively of the teeth and 
their diseases. 
Prosthetic dentistry 
seems to have been prac- 
ticed by the Etruscans 
or Foschi who flourished 
753 B. C. They were 
skilled workers in gold 
and some of the dental 
work found in their 
tombs is very inter- 
esting. 
The Romans con- 
quered Greece in 146 
B. C. and many Greek physicians went to Rome after the conquest. 
Ancient specimens of crown and bridge work have been found 
while excavating Roman ruins. 
Celsus, of a distinguished patrician family, wrote extensively upon 
dental subjects. So did Pliny, and even the poet Martial refers to 
the teeth in his satires. Pliny stated that by washing out the mouth 
three times a year with the blood of a tortoise, one could prevent 
being afflicted with the toothache. 
Celsus gives a prescription for producing sleep in persons afflicted 
with toothache. It contained acorns, castoreum, cinnamon, poppy, 
mandrake and pepper. 
The tooth powder used by the famous-and infamous-Messa- 
lina, wife of the Emperor Claudius, was composed of calcined stag's 
horn, mastic of Chios and sal ammoniac. 
THE SURGEON DENTIST 
From a painting by Lucas van Leyden (1494-1533) 10 
SKETCHES FROM DENTAL HISTORY 
In the Roman 
Law of the XII Ta- 
bles, it was decreed 
that whoever caused 
the tooth of a free 
man to fall should 
pay a fine of 300 as 
($30) and for that 
of a slave 150 as 
($15). 
Galen was a fa- 
mous medical man 
of Rome and the 
author of many 
works in medicine. 
He was the first to 
declare that the teeth 
had nerves. In pain- 
ful dentition Galen 
advised rubbing the 
gums with the milk 
of a bitch or the 
brain of a hare. 
Marcellus gives 
as a remedy for 
toothache: 
"When one is in the open country, catch a frog, take it by the 
head and open its mouth, spit therein, beg the animal to take the 
toothache, put it on the ground and let it go ■ " 
Martial, the writer and satirist, referred in several of his epigrams 
to the teeth, e. g., he makes a tooth powder say to one who has lost her 
natural teeth,- 
"I am not accustomed to clean bought teeth." 
Another carries the pungent rebuke,- 
"Without shame dost thou employ lots of hair and teeth that 
have been bought. " 
And again,- 
"She lays aside her teeth at night just as sho does her silken robes." 
FALOPIUS 
A celebrated anatomist HENRY VIII AND THE GUILD OF BARBER-SURGEONS OF LONDON (Chartered 1541) 
By Hans Holbein the Younger 12 
SKETCHES FROM DENTAL HISTORY 
After the decline and 
fall of the Roman Em- 
pire, knowledge and 
study of arts and sciences 
languished. It was a 
period of dark ages-the 
darkness before the dawn. 
In the middle ages 
several names stand out 
brightly on the scroll of 
the history of dentistry. 
Guy de Chauliac was 
a celebrated surgeon, who 
wrote much about the 
teeth and described in- 
struments to be used by 
the dental surgeon. He 
speaks of dipping a new 
sponge in the juices of 
opium, morel, hyoscya- 
mus, mandrake, ivy, hem- 
lock and lettuce, allowing 
it to dry in the sun and 
when desirous of putting the patient in shape to endure operation 
without pain, the sponge was to be wet in warm water and the 
patient allowed to inhale the fumes until he went to sleep. 
Giovani of Arcola, professor at the University of Bologne and 
later Padua, about 1460, wrote of the use of gold leaf for filling 
carious teeth and gave drawings of three dental instruments-the 
pelican, dental forceps and stork's bill. 
Walter Hermann Ryff, about 1544, published a monograph in 
which dental diseases were treated independently of medicine and 
surgery. It was written in German, a living tongue, instead of the 
customary Latin. 
In the middle ages, the extraction of one or more teeth was 
inflicted as the penalty for having eaten flesh during Lent, on those 
convicted of a felony, or for refusing to pay taxes! 
But it was to Vesalius, Eustachius and Falopius, eminent anato- 
mists, that dentistry owes the first impetus toward attaining a scien- 
VESALIUS 
An eminent anatomist SKETCHES FROM DENTAL HISTORY 
13 
tific basis. 
The first was 
brave enough 
to challenge 
the teachings 
of Galen, 
whose ideas 
had persisted 
for centuries 
without de- 
nial. 
Jaques 
Hou 1 li e r 
(1498-1562) 
seems to have 
been the first 
to cast a doubt 
upon the idea 
that worms 
AMBROISE PARE 
The father of modern surgery 
were found in the teeth. But su- 
perstition was hard to stamp out. 
Apropos of the belief that 
dental caries was caused by 
INSTRUMENTS USED BY AMBROISE PARE 14 
SKETCHES FROM DENTAL HISTORY 
"small, white worms," 
the Babylonians used an 
incantation, thrice re- 
peated to exorcise these 
agents:- 
"After Am had created the 
Heavens 
The Heavens created the 
Earth, 
The Earth created the Rivers, 
TheRiverscreated the Canals, 
The Canals created the 
Marshes, 
The Marshes created the 
Worm. 
Came the Worm and wept 
before Shamask, 
Before Ea came her tears: 
'What wilt thou give me for 
my food? 
What wilt thou give me to 
devour? ' 
I will give thee dried bone 
And scented wood. 
Let me drink among the teeth 
And set me on the gums, 
That I may devour the blood 
of the teeth 
And of their gums destroy 
the strength; 
Then shall I hold the bolt of 
the door." 
EUSTACH IUS 
An eminent anatomist 
John Gaddesden, an Englishman of 
Oxford, wrote a book early in the 14th 
century in which he advised powdered 
cow's dung or the fat of a green frog to 
loosen the teeth and cause them to fall out. He also declared that 
the brain of a hare would cause new teeth to grow after they 
had been lost. 
Ambrose Pare, born in 1517, the father of modem Surgery, con- 
tributed much to the art of dentistry. He described many dental 
instruments and advocated tooth transplantation or the replantation 
of artificial teeth. He advised the use of palatal obturators and 
dwelt considerably on the treatment of fractures of the lower jaw. 
He seems to have realized the necessity for divorcing surgery, general 
or dental, from its association with barbers and quacks, and to have 
done much to bring this about. 
Pare was popular both with the common soldiers and with Royalty, 
being chief surgeon at the Royal Court of Charles IX, Henry HI and THE DENTIST 
By Gerard Dou (1630-1680) 16 
SKETCHES FROM DENTAL HISTORY 
Charles X. The 
royal favor saved h i s 
life since he escaped 
the massacre of St. 
Bartholomew by 
being hidden in the 
King's wardrobe. 
Pare reported 
some interesting 
dental cases, among 
them that of a 
friend who had his 
jaw broken and 
three teeth knocked 
out by a blow from 
a dagger. Pare so 
skilfully treated the 
injury that all the 
teeth were success- 
fully replaced and 
made of use. He 
also transplanted a 
tooth taken from 
the mouth of one of 
her ladies in waiting 
to the mouth of a 
royal princess. 
In 1593, Germany was excited by the report that a tooth of gold 
had erupted into the mouth of a seven-year-old child. Countrywide 
discussion, explanation, dispute and controversy followed. Even the 
Professor of Medicine in a University at Helmstadt, one Jacob Horst, 
wrote a book in which he explained the miracle by stating that on 
the day of the child's birth, December 22, 1585, the sun was in con- 
junction with Saturn in the sign of Cancer, consequently the nutritive 
force had been so augmented that in place of bony substance, golden 
matter had been secreted! 
The founder of modem scientific dentistry was Pierre Fouchard 
(1690-1761). His celebrated work "Le Chirurgien Dentiste" was 
published in 1728 and was translated into German. He refers to the 
GUILIELMUS FABRICIUS, a German (1560-1634) 
Chief doctor to the City of Berne, who excelled in dental surgery THE DENTIST ON HORSEBACK 
By Johannes Lingelbach (1625-1687) 18 
SKETCHES FROM DENTAL HISTORY 
examination that had to 
be taken by those desir- 
ous of practicing dentis- 
try as far back as 1700. 
He wrote at length on 
caries, denying that it 
is due to worms, de- 
sciabed the excavating 
and filling of cavities 
with lead, tin and gold, 
methods for correcting 
irregularity, the making 
and insertion of artificial 
teeth, and the use of 
palatal obturators. 
Fouchard made his first 
full set of artificial teeth 
in 1737, and in 1746 made 
a double set for Aaron 
Burr, who wore them 
for years. 
Giovanni of Vigo, 
who was a surgeon to 
the Papal Court, also 
advised the cleaning out 
of carious teeth and the 
filling of the cavities with 
thin beaten gold. 
Anton Van Loewenhoek (1632-1723) was the first maker of pow- 
erful microscopes by means of which he pointed out the tubular 
structure of dentine. He also in 1683 described at length a form of 
micro-organism found in tartar. 
Nathaniel Highmore described the maxillary sinus that bears 
his name, but it was not until 50 years later that another English- 
man, William Cowper, formulated a successful treatment for its 
diseases. 
Cornelius van Solingen of Holland, in the 18th Century, was the 
first to use the emery wheel and small burrs to level and trephine the 
teeth. 
ANTONIO CAMPAN I 
An early Florentine dentist THE DENTIST 
By Rombouts (1660-1690) 20 
SKETCHES FROM DENTAL HISTORY 
tion and called for the 
use of less force, so that 
it was claimed that in- 
juries to the jaws were 
largely prevented. 
The old time Japanese 
dentist had no occasion to 
use forceps. He learned 
to extract teeth by first 
being given a board, into 
which a peg had been 
driven, which he learned 
to extract with the thumb 
and index finger only. 
These pegs were of 
different sizes and shapes, 
and were driven into the 
board tighter and tighter, 
M. DUBOIS DECHEMANT 
Inventor of mineral teeth 
Philip Pfaff de- 
scribed in 1756 the con- 
struction of artificial 
teeth, fashioned out of 
ivory, hippopotamus and 
walrus tusks, silver, 
mother of pearl and 
enamelled copper. 
The clumsy "Pelican" 
or rude forceps for the 
extraction of teeth was 
modified in England to 
what was known as the 
tooth key or turn key. 
This was perfected by 
one John Aitken in 1771. 
This instrument was de- 
vised to exert a lateral 
traction, by which the 
tooth could be dragged 
or turned out by its ac- 
JOHANN JACOB JOSEPH SERRE 
A Belgian (1759^1830), whose remarkable practical and 
scientific activity in dental operations was chiefly 
exercised in Vienna and Berlin SKETCHES FROM DENTAL HISTORY 
21 
Philip Pfaff, dentist 
to Frederick the Great, 
was the first to make use 
of plaster moulds. Pur- 
mann, another German, 
employed wax moulds for 
the same purpose. 
A French Chemist, 
M. Duchateau, is said to 
have consulted M. Guer- 
hard of Paris to see if a 
porcelain set of teeth 
could be made to replace 
those of ivory, which 
easily became discolored. 
M. Dubois Chemant, 
a Parisian Dentist, was 
consulted and solved the 
difficulty. Chemant kept 
on experimenting until 
in 1788 he produced a 
superior article. A law- 
suit followed-which re- 
sulted in a verdict being 
given that Chemant was 
entitled to the invention. 
PIERRE FOUCHARD 
French dentist, father of modern scientific dentistry 
until he who could extract them deftly 
was able also to pull teeth in like manner. 
John Hunter had much to do with 
the development of dentistry in the 
18th century. 
In 1745 the Company of Barbers and 
Surgeons, which had developed from 
the Company of Barber Surgeons incor- 
porated by King Edward IV in 1511, was 
split and the barber was only per- 
mitted to extract teeth. 
aaron burr's artificial 
TEETH 
Made by Fouchard,worn 26 years (1746) 22 
SKETCHES FROM DENTAL HISTORY 
Thomas Birdmore 
was the first dentist 
to receive the ap- 
pointment of Dentist 
to King George III 
of England. 
It was his student, 
Robert Wooffendale, 
who went to America 
in 1766 and was the 
pioneer dentist in 
America, the new 
land across the sea, 
which was destined 
to have so much to 
do with the History 
of Dentistry. 
As a matter of 
fact, America has 
contributed so richly 
and extensively to 
Dentistry as a science 
and an art, that lack 
of space prevents even a brief resume of these accomplishments. 
How the first dental college and the first dental journal were 
established, how the prosthetic branch of the art has been developed 
and perfected, how it was a dentist who first gave a practical 
demonstration of anaesthesia, and how American dentists have 
made their skill and ability known throughout the world, must 
be left for future description in Part II of the present series. 
JOHN HUNTER 
Contributed most valuable work in dental anatomy ^T^HE proper and effective mouth wash 
or dentifrice is one that may ration- 
ally be relied upon to destroy bacteria 
and the products of their activity, render 
the tissues and secretions unfavorable for 
germ growth, and maintain a healthy tone. 
Strongly alkaline solutions are no longer 
believed to accomplish this. Undoubt- 
edly their use causes over-stimulation of 
the glands, leading to a catarrhal secre- 
tion and relaxation or flabbiness of the 
mucous membrane and germ tissues. 
The germicidal and antiseptic action of 
Formaldehyde is admitted beyond ques- 
tion. The healing, soothing and tonic 
effects of the balsams (Pinus Pumilio, 
Eucalyptus, Myrrh, Storax and Benzoin) 
have long been recognized. 
Hence BOROLYPTOL is the agent par 
excellence to disinfect the mouth, tone up 
the gums, and ensure oral prophylaxis. 
It is, therefore, an ideal agent for dental use. Old Friends 
Are Generally Our 
Best Friends 
T^OR many years the medical and dental 
professions have relied upon the anti- 
septic and germicidal properties of 
BOROLYPTOL 
Its contained Formaldehyde, covered and 
rendered absolutely non-irritant by the 
balsamic constituents, ensures proper an- 
tagonistic effect upon disease-breeding 
micro-organisms, and products of decom- 
position and putrefaction. 
It hardens and tones up the gums, does 
not tarnish or affect gold dentures, does 
not over-stimulate glands, or provoke too 
generous secretion. 
It is fragrant, agreeable, non-staining and 
imparts a delightful sensation of freshness. 
It is deodorant and mildly styptic. 
THE PALISADE MANUFACTURING CO. 
YONKERS, N. Y. Ancient Dentistry recognized 
the value of mouth washes and dentifrices, 
but such agents were crude and only par- 
tially efficient. The modem Dentist employs 
BOROLYPTOL because it is not only act- 
ively antiseptic, germicidal, deodorant, mildly 
styptic, and absolutely not irritant, but also 
Fragrant, non-staining and without 
effect upon dentures or dentine. 
THE PALISADE M'F'G. CO., YONKERS, N.Y. PRESSBOARD 
l PAMPHLET BINDER 
Manufactured by 
GAYLORD BROS. Inc. 
Syracuse, N. Y. 
Stockton, Calif.