Operative dentistry in the second century BCE

Forensic archaeology in Britain

“…Stirland 1990;Roberts et al 1992), although research on more modern populations, for example at Christ Church, Spitalfields (Molleson & Cox 1993) has shown the forensic potential of excavating historically documented archaeological human remains. Notable advances in the identification characteristics of archaeological populations include: dentition (Bennike 1985;Zias 1987); the interpretation of factors indicating occupation, disease, activity or stress (e.g. Merbs 1983); and biological methods includirig both blood analysis (Gruspier 1985) and DNA (Richards et al 1993).…”

The earliest dental prosthesis in Celtic Gaul? The case of an Iron Age burial at Le Chêne, France

“…The iron support, the only surviving element, could have served as a radicular anchor for a crown made of another material (bone, ivory, wood) which has not been preserved. This hypothesis of a composite dental prosthesis composed of a metal support and a crown fashioned from a different material has already been suggested and discussed in relation to two Iron Age sites in Israel, at Lachish (Powers 1989) and in the Negev (Zias & Numeroff 1987).…”

Antibacterial properties of endodontic materials

“…Oil of cloves, phenol and creosote were used long before bacteria were considered as causes of pulpal and periapical damage. The earliest known case of endodontic treatment, performed more than 2000 years ago (Zias & Numeroff 1987), may have depended on the antibacterial properties of the bronze pin used as a root filling.…”