Did Tutankhamun Have a Dentist? The History of Dentistry in Ancient Egypt
 
More details
Hide details
1
Katedra i Zakład Anatomii Opisowej i Topograficznej, Wydział Lekarski z Oddziałem Lekarsko-Dentystycznym w Zabrzu, Śląski Uniwersytet Medyczny w Katowicach
 
2
Katedra i Oddział Kliniczny Chorób Wewnętrznych, Wydział Zdrowia Publicznego w Bytomiu, Śląski Uniwersytet Medyczny w Katowicach
 
 
Corresponding author
Marek Kucharzewski   

Katedra i Zakład Anatomii Opisowej i Topograficznej, Wydział Lekarski z Oddziałem Lekarsko-Dentystycznym w Zabrzu, Śląski Uniwersytet Medyczny w Katowicach, ul. Jordana 19, 41-808 Zabrze
 
 
Ann. Acad. Med. Siles. 2017;71:55-61
 
KEYWORDS
TOPICS
ABSTRACT
This article will attempt to find an answer to a seemingly mundane question – Did Tutankhamun have a dentist? Modern dentistry is associated with increasingly advanced treatment technology and expensive and sophisticated equipment located in most offices. In this paper, the authors present the situation in ancient Egypt, where in spite of the absence of access to the latest developments, there was interest in this field of science. From today's perspective, it is difficult to believe that the ancients were able to treat caries, remove teeth and immobilize them with a 'golden wire'. Although they did not know toothbrushes, they took particular care of oral hygiene using herbal mouthwashes. Contrary to popular belief, dental history is thousands of years old and archaeological discoveries confirm that ancient cultures had basic dental knowledge and even then pre-diagnosis and treatment of conditions in the oral cavity was possible. The civilization of ancient Egypt had not only a developed culture, politics, but also medicine including dentistry.
 
REFERENCES (23)
1.
Blomstedt P. Dental surgery in ancient Egypt. J. Hist Dent. 2013; 61(3): 129–142.
 
2.
Forshaw R.J. The origin of the dental profession: dental disease and dentistry in ancient Egypt. Dent. Hist. 2011; 54: 39–54.
 
3.
Forshaw R.J. Dental health and disease in ancient Egypt. Brit. Dent. J. 2009; 206(8): 421–424.
 
4.
Forshaw R.J. The practice of dentistry in ancient Egypt. Brit Dent. J. 2009; 206(8): 481–486.
 
5.
Greeff C.J. Dentists, dentistry and dental diseases in ancient Egypt. Rozprawa doktorska. University of South Africa. Pretoria 2013.
 
6.
 
7.
 
8.
Gerloni A., Cavalli F., Costantinides F., Bonetti S., Paganelli C. Dental status of three Egyptan mummies: radiological investigation by multislice computerized tomography. Oral Surg. Oral Med. Oral Pathol. Oral Radiol. Endod. 2009; 107(6): 58–64.
 
9.
Thekkaniyil J.K., Bishara S.E., James M.A. Dental and skeletal findings on an ancient Egyptian mummy. Am. J. Orthod. Dentofacial Orthop. 2000; 117: 10–14.
 
10.
Hoffman H., Hudgins P. Head and skull base features of nine Egyptian mummies: evaluation with high-resolution CT and reformation techniques. AJR Am. J. Roentgenol 2002; 178: 1367–1376.
 
11.
Nickol T., Germer R., Lieberenz S., Schmidt F., Wilke W. An examination of the dental state of an Egyptian mummy by means of computer tomography: a contribution to dentistry in Ancient Egypt. J. Hist. Dent. 1995; 43: 105–112.
 
12.
 
14.
 
15.
Marion L.R. Dentistry of ancient Egypt. J. Hist. Dent. 1996; 44: 15–17.
 
16.
Forrai J.: The beginnings of dental caries and its treatments. Rev. Clin. Pesq. Odontol. Curitiba 2009; 5: 187–192.
 
17.
 
18.
 
19.
Supady J. Dentystyka w starożytnym Egipcie. Protet. Stomatol. 2012; 62(3), 211–215.
 
20.
C:\Users\Natalia\Desktop\artykuł\1.EGIPT\Egipt\AncientEgyptianMedi-cine-Smith Papyrus-Ebers Papyrus.mht [dostęp 20.07.2015].
 
21.
http//www.ncbi.nim.gov/pcm/articles/PMC1034120 [dostęp 20.07.2015].
 
22.
 
23.
 
eISSN:1734-025X
Journals System - logo
Scroll to top