DHM Vol 7 No 1

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Dental History Magazine Vol 7 No 1
DHMDHM
Dental History Magazine VOLUME 7 NUMBER 1 Spring 2013

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Figure 1. The Tooth Ache
From an original picture by Edward Bristowe
Drawn on Stone, London, 1828
Wellcome Library, London
Figure 2. The Monkey Dentist
Dental Monkey Tricks
The art of Singerie (the French for monkey trick) is a class of comic illustration which was popular in the 18th
and early 19th centuries. Singerie depicts monkeys dressed in fine clothes aping human behaviour in a trade or
profession such as dentistry; the scope for mild satire in these paintings is obvious. In Figure 1, Tooth Ache, the
attention of the simian dentist and his nurse is fixed on their patient. The dentist’s testimonials are prominently
pasted on the screen behind the trio. However, in the background, the dentist’s apprentice is casting a concerned
glance behind the screen. Perhaps he is worried that his master has no further fee-paying patients waiting for
treatment. In Figure 2, The Monkey Dentist, the operator is extracting teeth for a queue of dogs. The satirical
comment in this painting may lie in the fact that the subtitle of the work is Teeth Extracted Gratis; animals are
easing the suffering of their fellow creatures for free—unlike their human counterparts. JMC

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DENTAL HISTORY MAGAZINE
Published by the Henry Noble History of Dentistry Research Group
Volume 7. Number 1.
Contents
4 Update
8 The Development of the Anticaries Dentifrice.
16 Symbolism, Solidarity and Gold Teeth in the Concentration Camps.
19 A Grand Day Out in Ayrshire, c.1890: West of Scotland Branch of the BDA.
21 Web News: The Centenary of Dr David Livingstone.
22 Word of Mouth: Dentist of Auschwitz by Benjamin Jacobs.
23 List of Subscribers.
Formerly The History of Dentistry Newsletter
Editor: Dental History Magazine, Dr Jo Cummins, j.cummins@dental.gla.ac.uk
Consultant Editors: Professor David A. McGowan, dmmcggowan@btinternet.com, DrRufus M. Ross, rm.ross@btinternet.com
Professor Khursheed Moos, kmoos@udcf.gla.ac.uk, Dr Mike Gow, mike@berkeleyclinic.com
ISSN 1756-1728
Chairman, Henry Noble History of Dentistry Research Group, Dr Rufus M Ross, rm.ross@btinternet.com
For further information about the group or to become a subscriber (currently £15.00 per year) please contact the secretary:
Dr Robin Orchardson, robin@kirkview.myzen.co.uk
Postal address: The Secretary, HNHDRG, c/o The Library, Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow,
234-242 St Vincent Street, Glasgow, G2 5RJ.
The Magazine may be read online at the Group’s web site: http://www.historyofdentistry.co.uk/ (ISSN 1756-1736)
HNHDRG is on facebook
Excerpts and quotations are permissible providing the usual acknowledgements are made.
Contributions on the History of Dentistry from any source are welcomed. Word and JPEG files by e-mail are preferred but
some other formats are acceptable.
Printed by Admin Systems Design and Print Ltd, Helensburgh.

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Update
The Spring Lecture 2013 Exposing Dental Roots by Michael A. Gow
On 12 march 2013, at the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, Dr Mike Gow of the
Berkeley Clinic Glasgow delivered the HNHoDRG Spring Lecture, entitled Exposing Dental Roots. Dr
Gow, who is a regular contributor to DHM and one of our consultant editors, began by discussing the
origins of his surname which is derived from the Gaelic word ‘Gobha’ meaning blacksmith who, in
bygone days would also have been the clan toothdrawer. It was therefore interesting that when he
undertook some further personal genealogical research, he found that he belonged to something of a
‘dental dynasty’ which was already well established in the 19th Century. The speaker learned that his
great-great grandfather James Aitken (1860-1919) had founded a thriving dental practice in Glasgow. It
was notable too, that one of James Aitken’s large family, his daughter Minnie, had gained an LDS in the
1920s and was thus one of the vanguard of female dentists in Britain. The outlines of Dr Gow’s family
history can be found in DHM, 5:2, 2011, pp. 10-13 and HNHoDRG Newsletter, 18, May 2006. His well
illustrated and fluent delivery was much appreciated by the audience and his clear enthusiasm for
genealogy and dental history invoked an interesting question and answer session which highlighted how
historical documents, such as employment testimonials, yield a wealth of information about the past; in
this case, the practice of dentistry. The expectations of nineteenth-century dentists regarding the future
of the profession were also discussed. Unfortunately their optimism that ‘forcep-less’ dentistry would be
realised by our own times has not materialised.
Dr Gow is related by adoption to the dentist Edward Tull Warnock. Edward’s brother, Walter Tull,
(1888-1918) was a First World War Officer and a professional football player. Edward Tull Warnock’s
grandson, Ed Finlayson, attended Dr Gow’s lecture at the Royal College on 12 March. Mr Finlayson is
Dr Gow’s third cousin once removed. The occasion was their first meeting.
Editor’s Note: Walter Tull (the first, British, black, combat officer)
was killed in action in France in 1918. He was recommended for a
Military Cross but it was never awarded. There is an ongoing
campaign for the medal to be awarded posthumously.
Website: www.crossingthewhiteline.com
*Please sign the online petition for the posthumous
award of the Military Cross to Walter Tull.
http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/41209
The Development of the Modern Anticaries Dentifrice
In this article, which is based on his Menzies Campbell Lecture at Glasgow Dental Hospital and School,
in the autumn of 2012, Paul Riley guides us through the history of oral care products. The article
discusses the history of the products and provides a fascinating window into how manufacturers develop
a toothpaste through early formulation and testing to advertising and sale for different markets.
Walter Tull

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Symbolism, Solidarity and Gold Teeth in the Concentration Camps
Continuing his theme of aspects of dentistry during the Second World War, Xavier Riaud considers the
use of gold which was obtained from the extracted teeth of Jewish prisoners in Nazi concentration
camps. The article is a harrowing exposition of Nazi procedures but it also reveals how some men, both
from within the camps and outside of them, attempted to resist the brutality. Dr Riaud rehearses the
contributions of both Oskar Schindler and the Catholic priest, Dr Johann Gruber. Editor’s Note: Please
see this issue’s ‘Word of Mouth’ Dentist of Auschwitz by Benjamin Jacobs in relation to this article. The
author describes his feelings on being forced to extract the teeth of victims.
A Grand Day Out in Ayrshire, c. 1890: West of Scotland Branch of the BDA
While researching the Archives of the British Dental Journal, one of our Consultant Editors, Dr Mike Gow,
came across a most engaging extract detailing the proceedings of the West of Scotland Branch of the British
Dental Association at the end of the nineteenth century. The members had discussed many weighty matters,
including innovations in anaesthesia by the use of nitrous oxide or chloroform and the importance of
solidarity in the profession. On the final day however, the dentists relaxed and listened to the account of ‘a
visitor’ to their meeting who had some pithy things to say about Scotland and the Scots The speaker finished
with an hilarious account of a Dental Association outing through Ayrshire by coach and four.
Web News: ‘Another wrench and I roared out murder’
Carol Parry reviews the events of this year’s Bicentenary of the birth of Dr David Livingstone. The Royal
College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow has joined the Livingstone Centre in Blantyre,
(Livingstone’s birthplace) in commemorating this renowned medical missionary’s life and work.
Livingstone has a special connection with Glasgow since he obtained a Licentiate’s Diploma
From the RCPSG shortly before his departure for Africa. Carol draws our attention to a new online
collection of Livingstone’s correspondence and highlights one letter which reveals how Dr Livingstone’s
wife, Mary, was obliged to undertake excruciating amateur dental surgery for her husband while they were
living in isolation in the depths of The Dark Continent.
More News From The RCPSG
On 6 June 2013, The Goodall Memorial Symposium on Transplantation will be held at The Royal
College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow. Speakers will be Mr David Hamilton, Professor
Stephen Wigmore and Dr Maureen Park. For more information, please contact Carol Parry
carol.parry@rcpsg.ac.uk
Word of Mouth
In this edition, Jo Cummins reviews Dentist of Auschwitz by Benjamin Jacob. When the author was barely
more than a boy and a first year student of dentistry, Benjamin Jacob and his father were transported from
their village in Poland to a number of vile Nazi work and concentration camps. In his old age, Jacobs set
down their experiences in his memoirs. As a first year student, he clearly had little knowledge or experience
of the practice of dentistry but on the day that he was forced away from home, his mother had insisted that
he took his new ‘dental tools’ with him. Her forethought later saved his life.
Congratulations
We are delighted to congratulate two regular contributors to DHM. Carol Parry, Library and Heritage Manager of
the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, has been appointed Secretary of The Scottish Society
for the History of Medicine and Xavier Riaud has recently become an Honorary Member of The French Surgical
Academy for his services to the History of Dentistry. As Dr Riaud became an Associate Member of The French
Dental Academy in 2010, he is now the first dentist to be a member of both the Medical Academies of France.

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Lindsay Society Golden Jubilee Meeting Report by David McGowan
The Lindsay Society’s golden jubilee meeting was held in Cardiff on the 5/7th
October 2012.
It was attended by 50 members and guests. The social programme commenced with a tour of the Welsh
Parliament’s Senedd Building followed by supper and a performance of ‘La Boheme’, at the
magnificent Welsh Millennium Centre in the Cardiff Bay development.
The first meeting session opened with a welcome and an account of the Society’s first fifty years by the
outgoing Chairman, Dr Stuart Robson. This was followed by a paper from Dr Danielle Huckle entitled
‘From Boston to Beast’ which described the remarkably rapid spread of the news of Morton’s first
anaesthetic, from the USA to a small country town where it seems the first general anaesthetic in Wales
was administered. In discussion the speed of adoption of medical innovation in those days was
contrasted with that in today’s risk-averse society. Stuart Geddes, the Society’s incoming Chairman
followed with a presentation based on his remarkably extensive collection of stamps, post-marks and
first-day covers with a dental theme, some of which had been used in a series of BDJ cover pages.
Melanie Parker from the BDA museum gave a comprehensively researched paper on ‘Lilian’s Ladies-a
global perspective’ in which she traced a number of women dentists from Britain and Europe who had
qualified in the USA in the late 19th
century.
The Golden Jubilee Dinner was held in the evening when the toast to the Society was proposed by the
BDA President, Dr Frank Holloway, and Stuart Robson responded.
The Sunday morning session began with a comprehensive account of how light revolutionised
(conservative) dentistry by Professor Nairn and Dr Margaret Wilson.
Prof Stanley Gelbier followed with a biographical account of Professor Geoffrey Slack, highlighting his
contribution as the ‘father’ of Dental Public Health in the UK .Melanie Parker then showed
Cunningham’s 100-year old films of his Cambridge children’s dental clinic. The 50th
AGM followed
and demonstrated the healthy state of the Society – ready for it’s next 50 years.
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Request For Information About This Photograph
Rachel Bairsto of the BDA Museum has contacted us regarding this photograph of a fancy dress event at
Glasgow Dental Hospital and School. It is likely that it is associated with the Garscube Fundraising
Pageant of 1928 but if any of our readers can positively identify the people in the picture or can supply
more details, please contact Rachel.
E-mail: r.bairsto@bda.org or by overland mail BDA Museum Services, 64 Wimpole Street, London
W1G 8YS.

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Beryl Murray Davies Secret Service Dentist
Beryl Murray Davies qualified as a dental surgeon in 1933. She sub-
sequently ran a successful practice in Harley Street London from the
1940s until the early 1990s.
During the Second World War, Dr Murray Davies worked with the
Special Operations Executive (SOE) to replace the ’English’ dental
work in the mouths of agents who would be sent into occupied terri-
tory in Europe. It is reported that she carried out this difficult work at
night, without assistance in order to ensure secrecy. Nevertheless,
Beryl Murray Davies was never acknowledged for this work. She left
a legacy of £10,000 to The Faculty of Dental Surgery at the Royal
College of Surgeons of England. The Faculty are endeavouring to
help bring recognition for her war work. If any of our readers have
details of her contribution to SOE or the work of dentists in general
for the service please contact our secretary, Dr Orchardson (contact
details p. 3) or email: jdonald@rcseng.ac.uk
See NEWS, BDJ Volume 213, No. 3, Aug 11, 2012.
Forgotten Voices: The Importance of Dentistry in the Great War
Those who lived through the Great War are sadly, nearly all deceased but for decades, the sound archive
at the Imperial War Museum has been recording the testimony of witnesses. Despite the massive
casualties during the War it seems that dental treatment was not neglected. Lieutenant Godfrey
Buxton of the 6th Battalion, Duke of Wellington’s Regiment said this:
‘ We didn’t have dentists in any great number until 1916. Then, when the dentists came over and men
got their teeth put right, and the dead ones pulled out and so on, it certainly got them into another era of
health, because their food could then be properly digested. It seems a small thing, but it was of tremendous
value when these dentists came and improved teeth… Until then I don’t think the public were as conscious of
the value of teeth. And I believe it began a tremendous change in the attitude of the working
classes after the war - quite new to what had happened before it.’
Extract from Forgotten Voices of the Great War, Max Arthur in association with the Imperial War
Museums, Telegraph Booklet, p. 23. Illustration below WWI Poster, in aid of War Bonds.
Poster Photo: FoxNews.com
Photo: British Dental Journal

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Unhealthy dentition and stained teeth can have a
profound effect on the quality of life, they can:
Produce pain
Affect facial features
Impact on mastication
Restrict the enjoyment of food
Reduce social confidence by inhibiting close partner-
ships with the opposite sex and interfering with speech.
The Parlour of Great Risk
Indeed Diane Ackerman in her book A Natural History
of the Senses wrote ‘The mouth is more than just the
beginning of the long pipeline to the anus: It’s the door
to the body - the place where we greet the world, the
parlour of great risk.’ (Ackerman D. A Natural History
of the Senses 1990.)
Bradlaw writing about dental health and education in
the late 1800s noted that Edward Breham, a surgeon
dentist at Leeds, stated:
‘… many ladies owe the acquisition of a husband to
the attraction of a beautiful set of teeth. Without these
the regular features are uninteresting, if not repulsive.
The lustre of the most brilliant eyes, the fascination of
the most graceful figure, are marred by the very smiles
which a good set of teeth would have rendered capti-
vating. The prettiest lips concealing the defects of disease
within repel those whom they would have otherwise de-
lighted.’ (Bradlaw R. Gaudeamus Igitur. British Dental
Journal 109; 138-142: 1960.)
In 1801 R.C. Skinner, a pioneering early American
dentist, wrote:
‘It is an incontrovertible truth, that a clean, regular,
sound set of teeth contribute greatly to the beauty of
the human physiognomy; that they are indispensably
necessary to the preservation of a clear and distinct
articulation, and formed by Nature for masticating and
preparing food for digestion; the preservation of them
is, therefore, unquestionably of consequence, and wor-
thy the attention of every human being.’
Chapin A. Harris of Baltimore, the Dean of the first
dental school in the USA, wrote in 1839:
‘However scrupulously particular persons of either sex
may be in regard to their dress, and although they may
be decked with jewels and sparkle with diamonds, if
they at the same time be unmindful of a proper atten-
tion to the cleanliness of their teeth, they will fail to
excite in individuals of refined taste, those feelings of
admiration which most desire to elicit, and which these
organs when the requisite care has been bestowed upon
them always attract.’ (Harris CA. Cleanliness of the
teeth. Its importance to their health and preservation,
and the means necessary to its accomplishment.’
American Journal of Dental Science 1; 9-12: 1839.)
On the social effects of halitosis Jónsson wrote:
‘Man is desirous of being popular as a lover and attrac-
tive to the opposite sex and the art of love (as the Cau-
casian usually expresses it) consists of caresses which
begin with oral to oral contact. It is thus important that
the breath be ‘sweet’ and inoffensive to the person re-
ceiving or returning these caresses; otherwise, love
may be terminated before it has begun!’ (Jónsson R.
Halitosis: A review. L’Hygieniste Dentaire Du Canada
19; 52-54: 1985.)
It is therefore not surprising that from time immemo-
rial man has sought ways to keep teeth clean and
healthy. The evolution of dentistry and early remedies
to improve dental heath has been the subject of numer-
ous articles and textbooks. The interested reader is di-
rected to the excellent books by Guerini (Guerini V. A
history of dentistry: From the most ancient times until
the end of the eighteenth century. Lea & Febiger,
The Development of the Modern Anticaries Dentifrice
by
P. I. Riley
Figure 1. The Importance of Oral Care

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Philadelphia and New York, 1909.), Ring (Ring M. An
illustrated history of dentistry) and Wynbrandt
(Wynbrandt J. The excruciating history of dentistry.
Toothsome tales & oral oddities from Babylon to
braces. St. Martins Press, New York, 1998.)
The first recorded dentist is believed to be Hesi-Re,
‘Great One (Chief) of the Toothists and Physicians’,
who lived about 3000 BC in the reign of King Zoser of
the third dynasty. (Figure 2) Five wooden panels were
found in his burial chamber near the Step Pyramid of
Saqqara where, in the right-hand corner of one, three
hieroglyphs record him as the ‘greatest of those who
deal with the teeth, and of the physicians. Besides this
medical title he had fourteen additional titles.
Ideas on the origin of dental caries can be traced back
the Babylonians and their legend of the tooth worm
which was recorded on clay tablets.
They believed that toothache was caused by a worm and
the pain was produced by its gnawing within the tooth.
Much later in 1872 Oliver Wendell Holmes addressed
Harvard’s first dental graduates and stated yours is:
‘a profession in whose presence kings are silent, at
whose command eloquence is struck dumb, and even
the irresistible and repressive voice of woman is
hushed in a brief interval of repose…’
‘You have, without doubt, a strong cosmetic urge as
your ally in interesting the public in teeth. There is no
pearl in any royal crown for which a young queen
would not give one of her front incisors.’
Whilst much has been written on the history of dentistry,
little has been written on the development of the oral
care industry which has supplied the world with tooth-
paste, mouthwash, toothbrushes and floss to combat
the effects of the most common dental problems.
(Stamm JW. Multi-functional toothpastes for better
oral health: a behavioural perspective. International
Dental Journal 57:351-363: 2007, Fischman SL. The
history of oral hygiene products: how far have we
come in 6000 years? Periodontology 2000. 15; 7-14:
1997.)
Today the major functions of toothpaste are:
1. Cleaning the teeth: removing stained pellicle, food
debris and plaque
2. Freshening the mouth: this is a combination of the
product’s initial taste and after-taste. The major benefit
is from the flavour but the sweetener (typically sodium
saccharinate) and the humectant (typically glycerol
and/or sorbitol) also play a role.
3. Delivering a therapeutic benefit.
The toothpaste is designed to deliver effect levels of
therapeutic agents to combat the common ‘diseases’
for example, fluoride salts for tooth decay prevention.
This has become an essential requirement of all oral
care products since Procter & Gamble’s launch of
Crest toothpaste containing stannous fluoride in the
1950s which became the first oral care product to be
endorsed by the American Dental Association for its
clinically proven reduction in tooth decay in both chil-
dren and adults.
Historically perhaps these three functions also applied
to early formulations but there was little scientific un-
derstanding of oral care problems and how to develop
effective products. However it was clear that ‘unclean’
teeth usually indicated poor oral health and the slogan
‘A clean tooth will not decay’, in various forms, be-
came a popular mantra. The slogan is credited to the
dentist J. Leon Williams (1852–1932), first president
of the American Dental Association in 1927. However
his actual statement was:
‘Not a single fact has been brought forward to disturb
Figure 2. Hesi-Re
Figure 3. The Tooth Worm
Ivory teeth with internal carving showing the worm linked
with suffering in hell, France, c. 1780.

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the soundness of the axiom, ‘A perfectly clean tooth
will not decay.’’ (Williams JL. ‘Can we, by a change in
food habits, change the structure of formed enamel so
as to make it more resistant to caries’. Dental Cosmos
1927; 69:590-602.)
Not surprisingly therefore dentists recommended their
patients to brush twice a day; but they didn't see a re-
duction in dental decay and so they told their patients
to brush more vigorously. Clearly what was needed
was a more scientific understanding of the oral disease
process and primarily that for dental caries. The oral
care industry was helped with four key understandings
relevant to the dental caries process:
1. The recognition of the role of acid producing
bacteria from fermentable carbohydrates
2. The role of plaque in the caries process
3. The fall in salivary/plaque pH after an oral sugar
challenge
4. The protective role of fluoride in the dental decay
process
Willoughby D. Miller found that bacteria in the mouth
in the presence of fermentable carbohydrates, produced
acids that dissolved tooth enamel.( Miller WD. The mi-
cro-organisms of the human mouth. The local and gen-
eral diseases which are caused by them. S. S. White
Dental Mfg. Co.,Philadelphia, 1890) The theory that he
developed became known as the chemoparasitic caries
theory. His contribution, along with the research on
plaque by G.V. Black and J.L. Williams, served as the
foundation for the current explanation of the aetiology
of caries. Later several of the specific strains of bac-
teria were identified in 1921 by Fernando E. Rodri-
guez Vargas.
Antoni van Leeuwenhoek
It was Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, in the late 1600s,
who was perhaps the first person to record the presence
of bacteria in the mouth. He scraped the plaque from
teeth and observed what he described as the
‘animalculi’.(Bardell D. The roles of the senses of taste
and clean teeth in the discovery of bacteria by Antoni
van Leeuwenhoek. Microbiological Reviews 47; 121-
126: 1982.Dobell C. Antony van Leeuwenhoek and his
‘little animals’. Dover Publications Inc., New York,
1960.) He concluded that:
‘There are more animals living in the uncleaned matter
on the teeth than there are men in a whole kingdom,
especially in those who never clean their mouths,
owing to which a stench comes from the mouth of
many that one can hardly bear talking to them.’ (Tal
M., Periodontal disease and oral hygiene described by
Antoni van Leeuwenhoek. Journal of Periodontology
51; 668-669: 1980.) In 1897 J Leon Williams gave a
description of a ‘thick felt-like mass of acid-forming
micro-organisms’ on the enamel surfaces of teeth and
in 1899, G.V. Black coined the term ‘gelatinous micro-
scopic plaque.’ Both argued that this ‘plaque’ was the
causative factor of dental decay and gum disease
During the 1940s Stephan developed techniques to
show a fall in saliva and plaque pH following a sucrose
rinse and the concept of a ‘danger zone’ below a pH of
around 5.4 where calcium could be lost from the tooth
enamel. (Stephan RM. Changes in hydrogen-ion con-
centrations on tooth surfaces and in carious lesions.
Journal of the American Dental Association 27;718-
723: 1940, Stephan RM. Intra-oral hydrogen ion con-
centrations associated with dental caries activity. Jour-
nal of Dental Research 23; 257-266: 1944.)
During the first half of the twentieth century the story
of fluoride and its role in protecting teeth from decay
slowly unravelled. The key players in this story were
the dentist McKay, G.V. Black (enamel studies), Chur-
chill (water analysis), Trendly Dean (epidemiology)
and the human nutritionist and agricultural husband
and wife team - Margaret Cammack & Howard V.
Smith (animal studies).
In trying to understand the causative factors for the de-
velopment of ‘mottled teeth’ (or Colorado stain and
Texas teeth as it was popularly known) McKay sus-
pected that the local waters held the clue. He wrote:
‘Much as we have tried to get away from the water
idea, we keep coming back to it in hopes that it will
show us something.
…the evidence has been so overwhelmingly conclu-
sive, to the effect that the productive influence resides
in the drinking water, that the investigation now rests
upon this hypothesis.’ (McNeil DR. The fight for fluori-
Figure 4. Leeuwenhoek’s Microscope
Photo: Goodreads.com

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dation. New York: Oxford University Press; 1957, p13.)
Finally, in 1931, after careful analytical measurements
on the local waters Churchill wrote to McKay:
‘We have discovered that the Bauxite, Arkansas, deep
well water has a fluoride content of about 15 parts per
million. At the present time we believe that this fluo-
ride is present as calcium fluoride. Its presence was re-
vealed when the evaporation residue from this water
was spectrographed. The spectrum produced showed
the characteristic band of calcium fluoride. The pres-
ence of fluoride was so unexpected in water that a new
sample was taken with extreme precautions. Again the
characteristic band spectrum of calcium fluoride was
obtained.’ (Churchill HV. Letter to F. S. McKay in the
McKay Papers, 1931. Quoted in: McNeil DR. The fight
for fluoridation. New York: Oxford University Press;
1957.)
These findings gave the industry a scientific basis for
the inclusion of therapeutic agents into dentifrices. As
the science base increased and the need for clinical tri-
als emerged the industry moved from local manufac-
turers to, the now, international companies – it became
an expensive, but lucrative, business.
So how did the oral care industry evolve? Prior to the
early 1900s oral care products were developed and
produced by local dentists and pharmacists.
Formulations were simple, based on chalk, soap, glyc-
erol, sugar and flavour. Nevertheless quite strong
claims were made: protection against decay, removal
of tartar, freshening the breath and whitening the teeth.
It was, of course, recommended to use the products
with a toothbrush. Early products were either powders
or ‘cakes’ (compressed blocks of powders) which were
uneconomical and unhygienic to use. One of the earli-
est innovations in the industry was the adoption of the
collapsible tube – an innovation that was first used by
the Parisian artists to hold their inks.
Today the basic composition of most toothpastes is:
an abrasive, a humectant (which lowers water activity)
a surfactant, flavour, sweetener, binder, therapeutic
agents and various other constituents such ascolourants,
preservatives, buffers and opacifers.
Of course there are variants upon this generic formula-
tion such as clear gels and striped products which were
developed by manufactures to distinguish their product
from others. The essential ingredients in a toothpaste
are the abrasive, the flavour and the therapeutic agents
such as fluoride or zinc salts. The other components
contribute to the structure of the paste (building its vis-
cosity) and making the product more pleasant to use.
Today the most common abrasives are:
Amorphous silica (SiO2)
Calcium carbonate (CaCO3) either:
Synthetic, precipitated calcium carbonate
Natural chalk often called ground calcium carbonate
(GCC)
Dicalcium phosphate dihydrate, DCPD
(CaHPO4.2H2O)
Silica is often the abrasive of choice because it has high
chemical compatibility with the range of therapeutic
agents used by the industry. It is also the only abrasive
with which transparent formulations can be made.
Typically calcium carbonate and dicalcium phosphate
dihydrate are used in more cost-effective formulations
and they have a more limited compatibility with thera-
peutic agents. The major function of the abrasive is
to clean the teeth by gently abrading away stained
pellicle.
Mohs Hardness
Cleaning without damage to the underlying tooth
enamel and dentine is critical and depends upon the
type of abrasive (its Mohs hardness) its particle size
distribution and the amount in the formulation
This enables the formulator to develop toothpastes of
different abrasivity to meet consumer needs (e.g. chil-
dren’s products, products for sensitive teeth, smokers’
toothpastes). Standards exist for the maximum
abrasivity to exposed dentine that products must
not exceed.
Foulk and Pickering published an interesting article on
the history of abrasives in tooth powders and tooth-
pastes. (Foulk MA, Pickering E. A history of denti-
frices. Journal of the American Pharmaceutical Asso-
ciation 24; 975-981: 1935.)
Flavours dominate the sensory aspects of the toothpaste
giving an acceptable and characteristic taste, freshness
and a good after taste. They are low molecular weight
organic compounds typically based on mint
(peppermint or spearmint) often with a twist of, for
example, anethole, cinnamon, wintergreen or fruit.
Typical therapeutic agents found in toothpaste are:
1.anticaries agents: sodium fluoride, sodium
monofluorophosphate, amine fluoride, calcium
glycerophosphate
2. antibacterial agents: zinc salts, Triclosan
3. anticalculus/whitening agents:pyrophosphate salts,
polyphosphate salts, sodium hexametaphosphate
4. tooth sensitivity agents: strontium salts, potassium
salts, calcium argenine, calcium phosphosilicates
5. anti-halitosis: zinc salts, triclosan, flavours
In this paper the development of the modern anticaries

12
toothpaste is reviewed. Whilst credit is typically given
to McKay and his co-workers for the ‘discovery’ of
fluoride its use in oral care has a long history. Antoine-
Malagou Désirabode (1781-1851), dentist to Louis-
Philippe of France (1830–1848) and his court, was
probably the first to refer to the therapeutic use of fluo-
ride (as calcium fluoride) in dentistry in 1845. He re-
ferred to calcium fluoride as les fluates
In 1874 the German physician Carl Erhardt of
Emmendingen, near Freiburg, gave what was
probably the first reference to a prophylactic role
for fluoride suggesting that the protective effect of
fluoride depended on its ability to make the dental
structure harder. He observed hardening in the enamel
of a dog fed with potassium fluoride.(Erhardt C. Kali
fluoratum für Erhaltung der Zähne. Memorabilien
Monatsheft für rationelle Ärzte 1874; 19:359-360.) In
1954 the Journal of the American Dental Association
commented upon a paper published so 80 years previ-
ously thus:
‘Iron has long been used for the blood. Lime and phos-
phate are given as materials for the bones. Similarly, it
has been possible to administer fluorine for the enamel
of the teeth in a form soluble through juices, a form in
which it can be absorbed. It is fluorine which gives
hardness and lasting quality to the enamel of the teeth
and so protects them against caries. Several years ago
fluorine pastilles were recommended in England,
where dental care is known to be on a high level.
(Friedrich EG. Potassium fluoride as a caries preven-
tive: a report published 80 years ago. Journal of the
American Dental Association 1954; 49:385.)
In 1896 The German chemist Albert Deninger deliv-
ered to the Rhine Society for Natural Science in Mainz
a lecture entitled ‘Fluoride: an Agent to Combat Dental
Diseases and Perhaps Also Appendicitis’ stating:
‘To nourish the teeth correctly, finely powdered cal-
cium fluoride, fluorspar should be taken. Buy 100g of
finely powdered fluorspar (price 10 to 30 pfennigs) in
a suitable shop (drug, materials supply stores etc.) and
take some, first daily, then after about two weeks only
every two to four days, later on a smaller quantity at
even longer intervals.’
Some historians suggest that this was perhaps the first
‘clinical trial’ of fluoride.
In 1902, the Danish pharmaceutical company Cross
and Company promoted the sale of Fluoridens, a
preparation of fluoride compound (0.12g of calcium
fluoride) taken daily, to strengthen the teeth.
Their advertising pamphlet, ‘Fluoridens - How to
Remedy the Decay of our Teeth’ claimed:
‘The decay of the teeth was mainly due to the refined
foodstuffs which do not contain sufficient quantities of
fluorine. No dentist is in doubt that the teeth should
contain fluorine, and that this element is of great im-
portance to the enamel, which is the shield and protec-
tor of the teeth against all pernicious influences.’
During the period 1930-1950 research had shown that
fluorides (particularly sodium fluoride and potassium
fluoride) was adsorbed by tooth enamel and lowered
its acid solubility. and in 1939 Cox and his co-workers
wrote:
‘Whatever is the mechanism of the relative prevention
of dental caries by fluorine, whether the resistance is
structural, chemical, organic or combinations of these
factors, it seems evident that caries resistance can be
built into enamel.(Cox GJ, Matuschak MC, Dixon SF,
Dodds ML, Walker WE. Experimental dental caries.
IV. Fluorine and its relation to dental caries. Journal of
Dental Research 1939; 18:481-490.)
Perhaps not surprisingly during the early 1900s, fluo-
ride salts began to be incorporated into toothpastes as
indicated by the early patent literature. However the
American Dental Association were quite critical of
‘therapeutic dentifrices’ writing:
‘Dentifrices are defined as preparations (pastes, pow-
ders and liquids) which aid in the removal of débris
from tooth surfaces...
Many dentifrices on the market today are unnecessarily
and irrationally complex in composition. The Council
desires to point out that the aims of rational therapeutics
and ‘oral hygiene’ are defeated by the use of complex
mixtures, not to mention the large economic waste in
the sale of highly complex mixtures when simpler
Figure 5. Fluoridens, Early Advertising Pamphlet
Cross & Co

13
combinations are just as effective. This is in keeping
with the well known observation that dentifrices have
no direct demonstrable therapeutic action. The sole
function of a dentifrice is to aid in keeping the teeth
clean by the removal of loose food débris by the
mechanical use of the toothbrush…’
Claims are strictly limited to their efficacy as an aid in
the hygiene of the oral cavity and particularly to their
mechanical cleansing properties…
No unwarranted therapeutic, chemical or bacteriologi-
cal claims are made or inferred in their exploita-
tion.’ (Council on Dental Therapeutics. Dentifrices.
Journal of the American Dental Association 1930;
17:1943-1944.)
In particular a patent granted to a Roy Cross in 1934
(US Patent 1,943,856) for a ‘Dental Preparation’
claimed:
‘Hardening properties [to the teeth] are given in part by
the use of sodium fluoride. The combination of magne-
sium oxide and sodium fluoride is particularly valuable
in my dental preparation…Sodium fluoride also pre-
vents decay.’
This clearly annoyed the American Dental Association
who were extremely unhappy to see such patents
granted, stating:
‘More recently, a patent has been issued by the U.S.
patent office for a dentifrice which is stated to contain,
as one of the important ingredients, sodium fluoride.
Claims that it will white teeth by virtue of the fluoride
content are permitted. These allowed claims were in-
vestigated at the request of the Council by a qualified
collaborator in the laboratory of a member of the
Council, because (1) a patent for an essentially toxic
substance in a dentifrice was issued, and (2) it was be-
lieved that the attention of the profession should be
called to the presence of potentially toxic substances
which appear in dentifrices from time to
time.’ (Council on Dental Therapeutics. Toxic Potenti-
alities of a Fluoride Dentifrice. Journal of the Ameri-
can Dental Association 1937; 24:307-309.)
The Council concluded that the use of fluoride
in dentifrices is unscientific and irrational and
therefore should not be permitted.
Nevertheless the oral care industry together with dental
researchers continued with their studies on fluoride
salts. Basil Glover Bibby (1904-1998) at Tufts Univer-
sity Dental school was a pioneer of sodium fluoride as
a route to reduce dental decay. Whilst these fluoride
salts were effective in aqueous solution (earlier studies
on water fluoridation had also clearly shown they were
effective) little effect was seen when incorporated into
toothpastes. So interest in these simple fluoride salts
waned (Bibby did suggest the use of lead fluoride as an
alternative).
As interest in sodium fluoride waned, interest in
stannous fluoride (SnF2) rose. This was pioneered at
the Indiana School of Dentistry by Joseph Muhler and
his colleagues Harry G Day and William Nebergall.
Their collaboration with Procter & Gamble finally led
to the development of Crest toothpaste with Fluoristan
(stannous fluoride). (Muhler JC. The development of
stannous fluoride as an anticariogenic agent for topical
application by means of a dentifrice. Journal of the
Indiana Dental Association 34; 9-18 &21: 1955, Barrie
DS. Cosmetic considerations in the development of
Crest toothpaste. American Perfumer & Aromatics 75;
33-34: 1960) Their research had shown that the fluo-
ride ion was not chemically compatible with the usual
calcium containing abrasives (calcium carbonate and
dicalcium phosphate dihydrate). However stannous
fluoride was compatible with a specially heat treated
calcium pyrophosphate abrasive. This finding, which
they patented (US patent 2,876,166 March 3rd
, 1959),
was critical to the development of fluoride containing
toothpastes and of course to the commercial success of
Crest. (Miskell P. Cavity protection or cosmetic per-
fection? Innovation and marketing of toothpaste brands
in the United States and Western Europe, 1955-1985.
Business History Review 29-60; 78: 2004.)
Figure 6. First Advertisement for Crest with Fluoristan, 1956
Procter & Gamble

14
In the USA during November 1955, Procter & Gamble
launched Crest with stannous fluoride (fluoristan) with
the first advertisement appearing in Life magazine in
May 1956. (See Figure 6) Following successful clini-
cal trials in 1960 it gained the first American Dental
Association Seal of approval for a fluoride-containing
toothpaste and went on to become the top selling tooth-
paste in America. The Council on Dental Therapeutics
of the American Dental Association formally recog-
nised Crest with Fluoristan in Group B stating:
‘Crest has been shown to be an effective anti-caries
dentifrice that can be of significant value when used in
a conscientiously applied program of oral hygiene and
regular professional care.’ (Council on Dental Thera-
peutics. Evaluation of Crest Toothpaste Journal of the
American Dental Association 1960; 61:272-274.)
In 1964 the American Dental Association raised
Crest’s rating to category ‘A’ and listed in their
Accepted Dental Remedies. Crest remained the
only ‘A’ classified toothpaste until Colgate's MFP for-
mulation was granted the classification in 1969.
(Council on Dental Therapeutics. Reclassification of
Crest Toothpaste Journal of the American Dental As-
sociation 1964; 69:195-196.)
To promote the effectiveness of Crest with Fluoristan,
Procter & Gamble commissioned the American artist
Norman Rockwell to produce a series of adverts show-
ing children after their dental examination with the
caption ‘Look, Mom - no cavities!’ (Figure 7)
Despite Crest’s effectiveness and commercial success
all was not well. Reports began to appear in the lit-
erature showing the development of tooth staining
(possibly due to the formation of stannous sulphide in
the pellicle and plaque) with its use. Many of the
concerns from dentists on the staining with stan-
nous fluoride were sent to Muhler in America for
his comments. Muhler’s view was that the stain
formed on pellicle in those consumers who were
‘fast and heavy formers of pellicle’ and that it was
probably from tin adsorbed in the pellicle and the
discolouration was from the formation of tin
sulphides and oxides.
He went on to state ‘Stains are thus indicative of
pellicle that has not been removed by brushing and
in this sense it can act as a disclosing solution and
can be used as a guide to improve one’s brushing
habits.’
Consumers now wanted decay prevention
without tooth staining and, unknown to
many, a solution had been developed in
Germany – sodium monofluorophosphate.
Willy Lange (1900–1976) who studied chemistry at
Berlin and had a deep interest in phosphorus chemistry
and prepared sodium monofluorophosphate back in
1929. (Lange W. Über die Monofluorphosphorsäure
und die Ähnlichkeit ihrer Salze mit den Sulfaten.
Berichte der deutschen chemischen Gesellschaft 62;
793-801: 1929). His research covered the preparation
and isolation of monfluorophosphoric acid the esters of
which were nerve gas agents!
A sample of sodium monofluorophosphate was sent to
Harold Carpenter Hodge at Rochester University for an
evaluation of its toxicity. However Hodge, being also a
consultant to the Division of Dental Research at Roch-
ester, had an interest not only in the toxicity of this
new compound, but also in its possible use as an anti-
caries agent and so it found its way into an Animal an-
ticaries study.(White WE. Monofluorophosphate - Its
Beginning. Caries Research. 17; (Suppl. I) 2-8: 1983.
The monofluorophosphate story. British Dental Jour-
nal 1981; 150:285-286.)
The report of this study (Preliminary studies of the car-
ies inhibiting potential and acute toxicity of sodium
monofluorophosphate) on a new fluoride salt had little
impact on the dental community: ‘The reports created
no stir. The world of dental research was preoccupied
elsewhere and monofluorophosphate had arrived be-
Figure 7. Look, Mom—no cavities!
Norman Rockwell commissioned by Procter & Gamble

15
fore its time.’ (Shourie KL, Hein JW, Hodge HC. Pre-
liminary studies of the caries inhibiting potential and
acute toxicity of sodium monofluorophosphate. Jour-
nal of Dental Research 1950; 29:529-533.The mon-
ofluorophosphate story. British Dental Journal 1981;
150:285-286.)
The first commercial formulation to contain sodium
monofluorophosphate was made by the Hawley and
Hazel Company in Hong Kong in the early 1960s and
in 1969 Colgate MFP was the first dentifrice contain-
ing sodium monofluorophosphate to be accepted by the
ADA Council on Dental Therapeutics.(Council classi-
fies Colgate with MFP (sodium monofluorophosphate)
in Group A. Journal of the American Dental Associa-
tion 1969; 79:937-938.)
Duckworth, in his review of the early British clinical
trials for stannous fluoride-containing dentifrices made
an important comment with respect to sodium mon-
ofluorophosphate:
‘… in the one trial of a dentifrice containing sodium
monofluorophosphate the caries preventative action
was similar to that of the stannous fluoride-containing
dentifrice, a finding confirmed by Fanning et. al.
(1967), and there was no increase in tooth staining.
Therefore, a sodium monofluorophosphate-containing
dentifrice may prove to be the more acceptable prepa-
ration.’ (Duckworth R. Fluoride Dentifrices. A Review
of Clinical Trials in the United Kingdom British Den-
tal Journal,1968; 124 505-509.)
In 1975 the British Dental Association (BDA) also be-
gan to endorse a number for fluoride-containing tooth-
pastes (Colgate, Crest, Signal 2 and Macleans).
‘Within the next week or two, members of the dental
profession and the public will see the first endorse-
ment by the British Dental Association of a commer-
cial product aimed at improving dental health, on
general sale to the public, in accordance with a new
initiative that the B.D.A. has taken in the field of den-
tal health education. The first such product will be a
fluoride toothpaste and it will bear the endorsement:
‘‘Recommended by the British Dental Association.’’
The British Dental Association accepts that a properly
constituted fluoride toothpaste helps prevent tooth de-
cay. [Product] satisfies these requirements and is of
significant value when used in a conscientious and
comprehensive programme of dental care.’
‘Endorsement is intended to provide the public and
the profession with clear guidance as to which prod-
ucts can be fully relied upon from the standpoint of
effectiveness and members of the B.D.A. will be pro-
vided with a basis for recommending a product to pa-
tients.’
(Recommended by the British Dental Association.
British Dental Journal 1975; 139:224.)
Consumers now had an effective and non-staining
fluoride dentifrice – but was it the most effective?
Many researchers felt that simple ionic fluoride salts
like sodium fluoride ought to be more effective and
finally it was realised that the poor anticaries effective-
ness of simple fluoride salts in toothpastes was due to
its inactivation by calcium-containing abrasives. How-
ever the industry now had inert silica-based abrasive
with excellent compatibility with fluoride salts – the
problem was now solved. In 1994 an international
scientific panel concluded:
‘It is the opinion of this International Panel that the
reduction in the prevalence of dental caries which has
occurred in many parts of the world over the last 20
years is largely attributable to the use of fluoride and,
in particular, to the widespread introduction and use
of fluoride toothpastes. This opinion is consistent
with the recent statement from the WHO Expert
Committee on fluorides (WHO Technical Report 846
1994). The recommended use of a correctly formu-
lated fluoride toothpaste is therefore an effective pre-
ventive measure against dental caries. (Bowen WH
(editor). Relative efficacy of sodium fluoride and so-
dium monofluorophosphate as anti-caries agents in den-
tifrices. International Congress and Symposium Series
209. The Royal society of Medicine Press Ltd., 1995.)
The same Panel also agreed that:
‘The International Scientific Panel has examined and
discussed the available in vivo and in vitro evidence on
the mode of action and clinical efficacy of sodium
fluoride and sodium monofluorophosphate. It is the
view of this International Panel that the overwhelming
majority of the scientific evidence now available sup-
ports the statement that sodium fluoride is a more
effective caries-preventive agent than sodium mon-
ofluorophosphate when delivered in a correctly for-
mulated silica-based dentifrice at equivalent fluoride
concentration.(Bowen WH (editor). Relative efficacy
of sodium fluoride and sodium monofluorophosphate
as anti-caries agents in dentifrices.’ (International Con-
gress and Symposium Series 209. The Royal society of
Medicine Press Ltd., 1995.)
References integral to the text supplied by the author.
Author: P. I. Riley

16
In 1933, the first concentration camp opened in
Dachau. On September 23 1940 and December 23
1942, the Reichsführer Heinrich Himmler ordered
his SS doctors to recover gold teeth from the
cadavers of inmates and also from the mouths of
living detainees whose gold restorations had been
identified and recorded as ‘cannot be repaired’.
Although the first order to recover gold teeth
was issued on September 23 1940, its consistent
implementation was delayed for two years until the
period which has become known as ‘The Final
Solution’. The reason for this sudden, renewed
attention to the order at that time was the acute lack
of currency which the Nazis were experiencing for
the purchase of raw materials for the war effort. A
French study records that seventeen tons of dental
gold came from the camps. Twenty-five kg of this
dental gold was recovered in Mauthausen during
the war years, from one hundred to five hundred kg
per month in Buchenwald during the same period
and six tons from Auschwitz. In Treblinka, from
eight to ten kilos of gold were stocked in suitcases
each week. Eighty thousand teeth were found in
boxes during the liberation of the Oranienburg-
Sachsenhausen camp. (See illustration p. 18) Post-
war studies demonstrated that on average, five
teeth were extracted per individual – a study that
my personal research from archives of Auschwitz
corroborated-at the rate of 3g of 22-carat gold per
tooth. The obtained gold after remelting did not
exceed 2 to 3g (Kogon, 1999 ; Riaud, 2002).
At the end of the war the violent acts and
crimes against humanity which were committed by
the Nazis and the full horrors of their concentration
camps were revealed but as these atrocities became
known it also emerged that the cruelties
perpetrated on the victims had stimulated solidarity
among some of the camp inmates who had
struggled to save not only their own lives but
those of others. It should never be forgotten that some
survivors owed their lives to the self-sacrifice, altruism
and generosity of fellow prisoners. A description of
some of these brave individuals, who put others
first despite the dire circumstances follows:
Dr Johann Gruber (1889-1944),
Catholic Priest
Fr Gruber was a teacher and Director of the
Institute for blind people in Linz, Austria. He was a
staunch opponent of the Nazi regime. Gruber was
dangerously open about his antipathy to the Nazis
and never hesitated to prove his convictions by
challenging them in public. Embarrassed and
frightened by his actions, the Austrian government
used Fr Gruber’s behaviour as a pretext to arrest
and convict him as a political prisoner. (He was not
pardoned from this Nazi sentence until 1999.)
After a short stay in jail, he was sent to
Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp in 1940
and then on to Gusen I.
During the time that Fr Gruber was
incarcerated at Gusen, the Nazis started the digging
for the construction of a railway line to supply the
camp. During this work, a bronze age burial site
was discovered. Subsequently, a museum to
display the excavated artefacts was established on
the site by Himmler himself. As he was an
educated man, and had many influential friends in
the Austrian social elite, Father Johann Gruber was
appointed archaeological supervisor at the
museum. Two to three months later, the
Reichsführer SS also appointed Fr Johann
Inspector General of the Austrian concentration
camps. As a result, in pursuance of this work, the
priest was authorized to leave Gusen for two days
once a month.
Taking advantage of this partial freedom,
Gruber promptly borrowed money from his
contacts in Vienna and organized a scheme for
feeding camp detainees which was based on
cigarette trafficking. He had clearly observed that
in the camps, these items were a scarce and much
prized commodity by the SS and prisoners alike.
By bartering cigarettes for food behind Hut Block
19, when he returned to Gusen, Father Gruber kept
at least ten detainees alive during the spring of
1943 and by 1944 the priest had sixty prisoners
under his care. Nevertheless, to fund the ever
growing ‘Gruber Aid’ it was necessary to develop
Symbolism, Solidarity and Gold Teeth in the Concentration Camps
by
Xavier Riaud

17
the scheme into areas beyond cigarette bartering.
He began to buy gold teeth from the crematorium
which he transported to Vienna to be transformed
into ingots. The gold ingots were then exchanged
for paper money and the money was used to buy
bottles of soup.
Every night, the cooks delivered fifty litres of
soup, sometimes seventy-five litres, to the Catholic
priest which he distributed to the hungry via the
sinks of Block 12. As he had a particular affection
for the French, he helped up to thirty-five French
detainees and many other fellow prisoners from
various nationalities.
Alas, on April 4 1944, Father Gruber was
arrested. At the same time, one of the priest’s
contacts in Vienna, a lawyer who was part of the
relief organisation, was shot in his city apartment
by the Gestapo, eventually all the members of
Gruber’s network were captured.
After his arrest, Father Gruber was tortured for
three days. On Friday 7 April, at 3 o’clock in the
morning, he ‘committed suicide’ with the help of
the camp commandant, named Seidler who had
strangled him but concealed the murder as a
suicide. His body was found hanging on a butcher’s
hook. As Fr Gruber had been a member of the
Austrian Resistance, he had kept silent about his
colleagues in the network, despite being subjected
to torture. When his death was officially
announced, everybody observed a minute of
silence. Many detainees cried on that particular day.
Later on, in justification of their actions, the SS
administration complained of the ‘embezzlement’
of dental gold and foreign currency which Fr
Gruber had carried within the inside lining of his
clothes to fund his feeding programme. The
detainees never forgot Johann Gruber and
nicknamed him the ‘Giant of Gusen’. They recalled
that when a fellow prisoner named Cayrol had
come to Fr Gruber for spiritual advice, the priest
had replied: ‘As for the soul, you’ll think about it
later. First, you need to eat.’ and he also used to say
to his companions in adversity: ‘Surviving is the
only form of resistance in a concentration
camp.’(Bernadac, 1969; Rousseau-Rambaud,
2012).
The Chalice of Dachau
Upon the liberation of the Dachau camp, following
the advice of the Archbishop of Munich, a chalice
was made from gold; it was a special cup. The
priest, who poured the metal for the chalice, used
particular gold discovered in the ‘Canadas’, that is
to say, gold which had been taken from detainees
who died in Dachau crematorium, consisting of
rings, jewels, eyeglass frames but also from
teeth ‘recovered’ in the morgue (Bernadac, 1969)
One man recalled:
‘Each day during summer 1943, in Birkenau,
detainees would come to offer us some cigarettes
and alcohol for brilliants, dollars, watches, gold
dentures and other valuable objects gathered after
the gassing operations...’
Hence, a significant traffic of valuable objects
started. The aim of the sellers was to survive. The
witness went on:
‘Our material and living conditions were
deteriorating day by day. No matter how much the
SS sentries, who were on duty below the barbwire
next to the crematorium tried to call upon us more
and more often to sell us all sorts of commodities as
well as tobacco and vodka, we had nothing left to
exchange. In this situation, Fisher, the morgue
dissection assistant, had a brilliant idea which
aimed at putting an end to our resource shortage.
Indeed, he put forward the idea of organizing the
dealing of yellow copper on a very large scale. This
was not difficult for, in the stockroom of
Crematorium V, there was a great quantity of light
bulbs whose screw threads were made in yellow
copper like the lamp sockets. So Fischer made a
few casts aiming at producing gold dental crowns
that he recovered with a thin layer of yellow copper
just the way it was supposed to. Then he pounded
the material and removed the crowns from their
casts. For my part, I only had to fill in the inside of
the tooth with a viscous plaster layer and we could
think that they were true gold teeth.
After making several fake teeth, I brought them
to a man who was waiting for me next to the
barbwire section. All the SS sentries knew perfectly
well that a detainee from the special commando
was dealing gold teeth. Therefore, I drew near to
the fence cautiously.
A sentry approached me; the barbwire
separating us, and I lured him with a handful of
fake gold teeth to check if his lust for money was
genuine. He stretched out his arm to give me a
string of sausages, a loaf of bread and some packs
of cigarettes. Then, I handed the teeth to him and
ran back to the crematorium, a little anxious that he
might have immediately stumbled on what had
been going on. I closed the door behind me with
relief. No-one would come to question the deal

18
anymore. When the secret of the making of our
teeth was exposed, people rushed on the yellow
copper. It was a real ‘gold fever’ which did not
spare anyone. It was inconceivable that the
unprecedented development of such dealing ended
up without any trouble. And yet, the SS were far
from suspicious about our trick. It was highly likely
that the buyers of this gold, which was supposed to
come from a theft, did not dare show it to outsiders
for valuation. Thanks to Fischer’s brilliant idea, our
painful living conditions in the special commando
were significantly allievated’ (Müller, 1980).
Oskar Schindler’s Ring (1908-1974)
A German industrialist, member of the Nazi party
and an incredibly opportunistic businessman, Oskar
Schindler made a fortune in the making of
enamelware and kitchen utensils in Krakow by
employing Jewish forced labourers. Thanks to them
and his income, he created his own factory that he
named Deutsch Emailwaren Fabrik.
While witnessing the 1943 raid on the Krakow
Ghetto, he was deeply appalled by his
compatriots’s violent acts and afterwards he
endeavoured to save the lives of many Jews. With
the help of his wife Emily and his Jewish
accountant Itzhak Stern, he saved the lives of more
than 1,100 detainees by buying them out from the
SS and more particularly from the commander of
the Plaszow camp, Amon Goethe, and by bringing
them to Czecholslovakia. There, he arranged forced
work for them in an armament factory in Zwittau-
Brunnlitz. Upon arriving at Auschwitz, he pulled
some strings and succeeded in saving his Jewish
female workers who had been mistakenly sent to an
extermination camp by the Nazi administration. An
imposing, handsome man, he never hesitated to use
his charisma, his art of diplomacy and his skills to
carry out his rescue efforts. In the end, he
committed his entire personal fortune to rescue
work.
He purposely devoted the profits of his
business firstly to save the Jewish workers of his
commando by improving their living conditions
were much better than those of other camps
because he saw to it that they were decently fed and
treated. Secondly, he sabotaged the output from his
own factory because he did not want to slow down
the Allies’ progress with his arms production. At
the end of the war, he emigrated to Argentina
where he became a farmer. It was a failure.
Therefore, he came back to his native land in 1958.
There, he once again failed in industry. However,
he kept in touch with the people he had saved. He
was awarded the title ‘Righteous among the
Nations’ in 1993; although his 1963 initial request
had met with refusal.
When the Zwittau-Brinnlitz camp was liberated, his
Jewish workers offered him a ring made from a
gold prosthesis which had been extracted from a
worker’s mouth to thank him for having saved their
lives. The industrialist wore it for the rest of his
life. He died on October 9th
1974 and was buried in
the Christian cemetery of Jerusalem (Keneally,
1982).
References:
Bernadac Christian, Les Sorciers du ciel [the Sorcerers of the
sky], France-Empire (ed.), Paris, 1969.
Gedenkstätte Oranienburg-Sachsenhausen, Oranienburg,
Germany, 2003.
Keneally Thomas, Schindler’s Ark, Hodder & Stoughton,
London, 1982.
Kogon Eugen, L’Etat SS : le système des camps de
concentration allemand [The SS State: the system of the
German concentration camps], La Jeune Parque (ed.), 1993
(translated from German).
Müller Filip, Trois ans dans une chambre à gaz d’Auschwitz
[Three years in an Auschwitz gas chamber], Pygmalion/
Gérard Watelet (ed.), Paris, 1980.
Panstwowe Muzeum Auschwitz-Birkenau, Oswiecim, Poland,
2001, 2003 and 2004.
Riaud Xavier, La pratique dentaire dans les camps du IIIème
Reich [Dental practice in the camps of the Third Reich],
L’Harmattan (ed.), Collection Allemagne d’Hier et
d’Aujourd’hui, Paris, 2002.
Rousseau-Rambaud Micheline, « Le père Johannes Gruber
(1889-1944) » [« Father Johann Gruber (1889-1944) »], in
www.campmauthausen.org, 2012.
Yad Vashem, Jerusalem, Israel, 1995.
References supplied by author.
Author: Xavier Riaud, Nantes France
Trays of gold teeth and dental work
Oranienburg-Sachsenhausen
(Gedenkstätte Orienburg-Sachsenhausen, 2003)

19
Our Consultant Editor, Dr Mike Gow, has brought to
our attention this extract from the archives of the British
Dental Journal concerning a meeting of ‘The West of
Scotland Dental Association’ in Kilmarnock. The piece
includes an account of a day excursion in Ayrshire
around 1890. Although this account is more than one
hundred and twenty years old, Dr Gow was struck by
the freshness of the piece, which allows the reader to
experience the camaraderie and marvellous enthusiasm
of the party of dentists as they travel through the Ayr-
shire countryside by horse-drawn carriage. The optimism
and good humour of our erstwhile colleagues is reminiscent of
Dickens’ Pickwick Club and also strikingly similar to the
atmosphere at a meeting which was described by Bob
McKechnie, almost a century later, in his comic poem,
‘West of Scotland Branch Minutes, St Enoch’s Hotel
1968’ which can be read in the HNHoDRG, Newsletter,
18, pp. 18-19 and online via our website -
www.historyofdentistry.co.uk JMC.
The members had enjoyed a series of meetings
where professional matters had been discussed. The
final encounter begins with an exchange of toasts:
‘Mr Woodburn next gave the toast of the ‘Scottish
Branch of the British Dental Association' which was
heartily received. Mr. A. Moore then gave the [toast to
the] ‘West of Scotland Branch.’ The Chairman, in re-
sponding, said that in the West they were doing all they
could to keep up the important branch of dental surgery
with which they were so closely connected. They were
not strong numerically, but they were endeavouring to
attain the position which they would like to hold. He
hoped that the meetings had been satisfactory and that
the present gathering was enjoyable. He hoped they
would all come back and help them in the West to keep
up the standard of that profession to which they were so
closely allied. The meetings had been entirely in the
hands of his friend, Mr. Rees Price, who had spared no
effort to make them successful. Mr. Biggs, in a few
words, proposed the toast of ‘Kindred Societies,’ cou-
pled with the name of Dr. Rankin, of Kilmarnock, Vice-
President of the Ayrshire Medical Union. Mr. Rankin,
in reply, said that it gave him much pleasure personally
to be present at the meeting, and in the name of the
medical practitioners of Kilmarnock, and as Vice-
President of the Ayrshire Medical Union, and as a mem-
ber of the British Medical Association, gave them a
hearty welcome to Kilmarnock. He had been very much
pleased with the demonstrations in the Art Gallery, and
to note the rapid progress which the profession of den-
tistry was making. He was of opinion that it was only in
its infancy, and that a bright future was before the pro-
fession.
Union Was Strength
He had been present at the demonstrations of adminis-
tering nitrous-oxide and chloroform to a patient who
was having teeth extracted, and the effect was marvel-
lous. He was quite certain that further experiments
would elucidate even more perfect results in the allevia-
tion of suffering in so painful an operation as extracting
teeth. He was highly pleased with the remarks of the
chairman, Mr. Lipscomb, insisting upon every member
of the legitimate profession joining the Association in
their various districts. Union was strength. Let them be
thoroughly united, and they had no foe to fear.
All The Latest Improvements Fully Ventilated
One thing which he was very pleased to observe was
that the examiners and dental authorities were raising
the standard of the profession by extending the curricu-
lum before giving the diploma of surgeon-dentist. This
would have the effect of keeping out those who were
incompetent, and at the same time make the profession
more remunerative to those who were already members
of the Corporation. He trusted the day was not far dis-
tant when the British Medical Association would take
the Dental Association under its fostering care and look
upon it as a legitimate offspring, and recognise in it a
co-worker in ameliorating the ills which flesh is heir to.
He hoped in its annual gatherings they would have a
regularly recognised section of dentistry. All the latest
improvements in the profession would be fully venti-
lated. The other toasts were ‘The Visitors,’ proposed by
Mr. Campbell, and replied to by Dr. James McAlister,
Kilmarnock ; ‘The Chairman,’ by Mr. A. Moore, and
‘The Croupier,’ by Mr. Stirling.
A Grand Day Out
in
Ayrshire, c.1890
West of Scotland Branch of the British Dental Association

20
The assembly hears some observations on
Scotland and the Scots
A correspondent sends us the following account of the
excursion: ‘Ah me, for the early faiths and beliefs
taught to us in our childhood! In answer to the query,
‘What do you know of Scotland?’ we used to be in-
structed that “Scotland is a barren tract of country lying
to the North of England, famous for the hardness of its
rocks and of the heads of its inhabitants. It contains two
towns of considerable size: one, Edinburgh, built on a
tall rock; the other Glasgow, situated on the river Clyde.
The dwellers in the former city are proud, and charac-
terised as being ‘East endy and West endy,’ those of the
latter are distinguished by their sturdy and unremitting
endeavours to swell the national revenue, in which they
are greatly assisted by their won-
derful powers of inhibition.” But
truth and error were ever mixed,
and are here.
The Excursion begins
A while ago I received an invita-
tion to accompany the Scottish
Branches of the British Dental
Association on a short outing,
the rendezvous beingKilmarnock,
ever famous for the manufacture of night-caps (which
are now, however, taken internally).
On arriving I found an imposing coach and four drawn
up in front of the hotel, with crested panels and other
emblems of magnificence. The preliminary introduc-
tions were soon got over — the President, not a formi-
dable and over-awing individual, but one whose
hearty manner, and genial presence set us all at our
ease at once, and who himself handled the ribbons with
such an air of ‘I’m-used-to-this-sort-of-thing- don't-you-
know’, that we rattled off down the street with a rising
sense of respect at the versatility of his genius, and a
settled determination that for our own part we were go-
ing to enjoy ourselves. We were soon through the
streets of the old town, and out into the open country —
and what country! Never shall I forget that drive. The
weather was perfection — a bright sky above, a cool,
fresh air blowing in our faces; the road, every inch of it,
clean, hard, and dry, rattled musically to the fall of our
horses' hoofs as we bowled along. All around us nature
was clothed in its freshest green as yet untarnished with
summer dust; along through shady avenues, out into
bright open country, where the wind played rhythmi-
cally with the tall meadow-grass, hedgerows laden with
May blossom, long belts of woodland where the bright
fresh tints of the beech and maple stood out in pleasing
contrast to the sombre old Scotch firs, which one could
almost imagine looking down with patriarchal contempt
on their more changing kindred. And then as we neared
the coast, the sharply cut crags of Arran rose to view in the
distance, the island below bathed in purple haze, and in the
nearer foreground the sun glistening on the rippling sea.
After passing through the picturesque village of
Dundonald, with its old Castle towering above us, we
turned to the right towards Irvine, passing Auchens and
the old manor house of Shewalton; then on through
Drybridge and Loans, reaching the Troon golf links
which skirt the shore; we pulled up at the Club-house —
somebody said to water the horses, but as we all went
inside I cannot say if the purpose was fulfilled. I’ve had
something, however — I forget what they called it —
the name began with a ‘w,’ and it wasn't water, and it
wasn't bad.
After some more driving we reached the furthest point
of our travels. Burns' Monument, some three miles
beyond Ayr, and made ourselves personally acquainted
with some of the early scenes of Burns' pilgrimage here
on earth. We visited Alloway Kirk, immortalised by that
bard in ‘Tam O'Shanter.’ A
weird figure representing an
old man was placed there, who
might have been the father of
the witches as far as appear-
ances went. To him one of our
boldest spirits thus addressed
himself in these cabalistic words,
'Fire away, old man!’ The effect I
shall never forget. There was a
preliminary gurgle, and then followed an apparently in-
terminable succession of sounds more or less articulate.
On, and on, and still on, they went, and I sighed as I
thought of the joys of lunch which were awaiting us at
Ayr, and wondered whether we should ever realise
them. When lo! just as I was relinquishing all hope, the
same valiant spirit came to the rescue, and dropped a
coin into the figure's hand. The effect was instantane-
ous, the jaws snapped, the noise ceased, and all was
still. As we were coming away he (the bold member)
said to me, ‘What do you think of that?’ ‘Wonderful,’
said I; ‘Chinese?’ No, Scotch. He was reciting from
‘Tam O'Shanter.' ‘Grand poem that!’ Only one incident
occurred to mar the day's pleasure. Driving into Ayr, an
audacious youth, struck with the grandeur of our equi-
page shouted out that one word ‘Sequah.’1
In an instant
the light of twenty-eight eyes (fourteen pairs, that is)
blazed wrathfully upon him, and he shrivelled up and
disappeared in an instant, and we passed on not without
a sigh of regret, as we thought of his bereaved mother.
Arriving at Ayr we found ourselves in time, after all, for
a most acceptable lunch which our Ayrshire hosts had
provided for us, and we ate, drank, and were thankful.
After a short interval we dispersed, some returning to
their respective homes by train, others returning to Kil-
marnock in the same magnificent style as that by which
we came; and if anyone in my presence ever again casts
an aspersion on the beauty of Scotch scenery or the
kindly good-nature of Scotchmen, why, I shall be very
pleased to call him out!
1. Sequah, a Victorian Celebrity Quack
Image p. 19: Mr Samuel Pickwick addresses Pickwick Club

21
This year marks the bicentenary of the birth of the African
explorer and missionary, David Livingstone. Events are
taking place all over the world to celebrate the man and
his work. The David Livingstone Centre at Blantyre is
taking a leading role in publicising the events which are
detailed on a special Livingstone 200 website at www.
davidlivingstone200.org. The Royal College of
Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow is a partner in the
Livingstone 200 celebrations and held a special
bicentenary Livingstone symposium ‘Celebrating and
Learning from David Livingstone’ on the 19th
March
2013. Livingstone has a very special connection with
the College as he gained a Licentiates Diploma from the
Glasgow Faculty in November 1840, shortly before
setting sail for Africa and later, in 1857, he was
awarded an Honorary Fellowship. On view at the
Symposium will be a letter from Livingstone to his
friend, Alexander Brownlee of Glasgow dated 17th
July
1843. At that date Livingstone was at Lattakoo, South
Africa and already displaying his restlessness in
wishing to explore the country further. Finding the local
language relatively easy to master he had spent some
time away travelling into the interior of the country, a
‘long & tedious’ exercise using Dutch wagons drawn by
oxen. On these journeys he saw ‘tribes never before
seen by Europeans and preached the Gospel beyond
every other man’s line of things’. His first attempts at
practising medicine were not always well received.
Friends of a certain chief were ‘very angry with me
because they thought I had given him medicine to
change his heart instead of that to cure his disease’.
Gradually, however, he gained such a reputation for his
work as a medical doctor that he had to limit his
treatment only to those suffering with serious illness.
This letter is one of many of Livingstone’s letters that
are available on the Livingstone Online website:
www.livingstoneonline.ucl.ac.uk
The aim of ‘Livingstone Online’ is to make available an
accessible electronic edition of the medical and
scientific correspondence of David Livingstone.
Livingstone’s letters are scattered across the world, so
the ‘Livingstone Online’ website has published
transcriptions and reproductions of many of these held
by several major libraries in the United Kingdom and
elsewhere as well as letters held in smaller collections
(such as the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons
of Glasgow).
Listed amongst the letters on the Livingstone Online
website (but not currently with the accompanying
transcription and image) is a letter held by the National
Library of Scotland from Livingstone written in
September 1869 describing his wife Mary pulling out
one of his teeth using a pair of ‘shoe-maker’s nippers’.
In this letter Livingstone writes:
‘Every pull was like a haul at my entrails….
Another wrench and I roared out ‘murder’.
It came a little farther, but was still sticking
doggedly. Another trail of the nippers,
forceps, &c … completed our first attempt
at dentistry. We were a pretty sight in our
ghostly dresses, I on the floor & Mary
standing over me. It was dreadful. ‘Teeth
drawn at Chonuane 1/- each.’ Mouth rinsed
out afterwards with dirty water...
gratis.’ (Jeal, T. Livingstone, 1973, pp.77-78)
He lost nearly all his teeth
The tooth-pulling episode had taken place in 1849,
some twenty years earlier, but it had remained vividly
in his mind. Not that he had to worry too much about
toothache by 1869. For, as he writes in a letter to H.
Bartle E. Frere in October of that year (also on the
Livingstone Online website) by this date he had lost
nearly all his teeth. The years of fever and
malnutrition had wrought havoc on his body; he died
a few years later in 1873 at Ilala southeast of Lake
Bangweulu in present-day Zambia.
Websites to visit:
Livingstone 200: www.davidlivingstone200.org
Livingstone Online: www.livingstoneonline.ucl.ac.uk
Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow:
www.rcpsg.ac.uk
Author: Carol Parry
Web News
by
Carol Parry
Library and Heritage Manager
Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of
Glasgow
Dr David Livingstone
RCPSG

22
In June 1941, one hundred and sixty men between
sixteen and sixty years of age were transported from the
small town of Dobra in western Poland by the
occupying Nazis. These unfortunate men, who had been
torn from their families, were destined for a series of
labour and concentration camps. One of them was first
year dental student, Bronek Jaciebowicz (Benjamin
Jacobs). Jacob’s non-fiction memoir of the Holocaust,
written when he was in his eighties and suffering from
cancer of the throat, has been compared to Elie Weisel’s
novella, Night.1
On the day of the
transportation, each man was
allowed two bundles of
belongings. As Benjamin
prepared to leave, his mother
advised him to include his
first year dental tools. He
could not know then, that
these instruments would
save his life.
Benjamin and his father
were interned at Steineck
work camp where it quickly
became apparent that he and
the other inmates were now
engaged in a struggle for
survival. The daily rations of
coffee substitute, mortar bread, fake marmalade and
thin potato soup with slivers of horse meat were not
intended to sustain men who were engaged in hard
labour. Benjamin describes how his father’s ‘usually
pink coloured cheeks turned purple, his eyes deepened
and dark rings appeared round them.’ He weakened
daily despite Benjamin’s efforts to obtain extra bread
from a local baker. Yet, even in this brutal environment,
there are glimpses of a young man’s will to experience
the fullness of life. The author’s dangerous romance
with Zosia a young girl who lived near the camp is
heartbreaking. The lovers knew that according to the
Nazis, ‘sex between races was the ultimate sin.’
During one meeting with Zosia, Benjamin is
horrified when he realises that he is infested with lice.
This drives him to the camp’s so called, ‘first aid
station’ in search of Naptha (an insecticide). There, he
comes to the attention of the attendant who remembered
that he had been a dental student. A few days later he is
asked to attend his first patient - a case of toothache.
He retrieves his box of ‘tools’ from under his pillow,
and on examination could see a fistula beside the
patient’s upper second molar. He disinfects his scalpel
over a flame and cuts through the fistula, letting the pus
drain out. The procedure was a success and from then
on he was consulted regularly. Although at times all he
could do was dab iodine on gums which were bleeding
due to lack of Vitamin C, everyone began to call the
young man ‘Dentist’. He recalls how he shook when he
could not avoid performing an extraction - the molar
crumbled leaving all three roots in the bone.
After Steineck, Benjamin was moved on to other
Nazi camps but eventually he and his father arrived at
Auschwitz, the horrors of which he amply confirms. His
testimony is a hard read. He says that in Auschwitz men
became more aggressive than animals and he describes
‘a selection’ by Dr Mengele. Although he was initially
consigned to hard labour in the mines at Auschwitz his
reputation as a dentist had
preceded him and he had
the ‘good fortune’ to be
appointed to the camp’s
dental station. This meant
extra life-saving rations
which he shared with his
father and brother Josek
(who had joined them). As
the dental station would be
treating SS men, it was
equipped with up-to-date
equipment including a
dental laboratory and even
a patient appointment
book. He learned later that
it had all been confiscated
from a Polish dentist.
Benjamin’s function was
mainly to extract teeth but
he also filled cavities with silicone or phosphate. He
was ordered to remove gold teeth from Jewish corpses
which he says was ‘the hardest thing he had to do.’ He
never lost the revulsion he felt each time he was forced
into the morgue where ‘atrophied bodies lay in a mass
on the cement floor….I heard the voices of broken
hearts and crushed souls.’
Benjamin’s father did not survive the camps but
after many trials, he and his brother were liberated. He
recalls Allied bombers ‘glittering in the sun like silver
doves sent by heaven.’ This is a most readable and
valuable testimony. The book’s first-hand account of
dentistry in Auschwitz is surely unique.
1. Weisel, E. Night, Penguin, ISBN-10: 0141038993
‘Dentist of Auschwitz’ by Benjamin Jacobs is available to
read free online at http://www.nizkor.org/features/dentist/
Reviewer: Jo Cummins
Word of Mouth
Dentist of Auschwitz
by
Benjamin Jacobs
ISBN-10: 0813190126
Reviewed by Jo Cummins
The author (second from right) with his brother Josek,
(far left) sister Pola, and their Uncle Schlomo.
Taken in 1934, before the Nazi occupation of Poland.
Photo: The Nizkor Project

23
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Editor’s Note: If your name has been omitted from
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24
University of Glasgow RCPSG
Five People, Each Exercising One of the Five Senses
Coloured Lithograph after L.- L. Boilly, Paris, c. 1823

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