{"id":336,"date":"2024-05-13T21:58:28","date_gmt":"2024-05-13T21:58:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/?p=336"},"modified":"2024-06-05T22:02:11","modified_gmt":"2024-06-05T22:02:11","slug":"ancient-cosmetic-dentistry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/","title":{"rendered":"Did Ancient Cultures Have Cosmetic Dental Treatments?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"346\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AdobeStock_101141241__1717624878_81210.jpg\" alt=\"Egyptian pyramids\" class=\"wp-image-337\" style=\"width:317px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AdobeStock_101141241__1717624878_81210.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AdobeStock_101141241__1717624878_81210-300x130.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AdobeStock_101141241__1717624878_81210-768x332.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>If you\u2019ve ever thought that you\u2019d like a prettier smile, you\u2019re not alone. Ever since people figured out how to recognize their own reflections, they have sought ways to achieve more beautiful and attractive smiles. Ancient cultures used a variety of methods to achieve more visually pleasing grins, and while they could sometimes be successful, they were often painful, destructive, or otherwise unpleasant. Here are a few of the ways ancient people tried to achieve prettier teeth so you can appreciate how clean, painless, and effective <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/contact.html\">modern cosmetic dentistry<\/a> is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Ancient Dental Restorations<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Tooth loss and dental injuries have always been common oral health problems, and ancient cultures developed a few ways of addressing them. In 700 B.C., the Etruscans of what is today called Italy made dentures from ivory and bone that incorporated the teeth of animals or dead humans. For their part, the ancient Egyptians made dental crowns and bridges out of gold. The people of Pharoah\u2019s realm also had their version of dental implants, which were shards of seashells hammered into patients\u2019 gums. These primitive implants were sometimes quite successful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Romans Wanted Their Teeth Flush with One Another<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Modern professional teeth whitening treatments are effective, safe, painless, and entirely sanitary. The Ancient Romans, on the other hand, had a fairly effective but totally gross teeth whitening treatment that was at least readily available to citizens of all social classes. By rinsing their mouths with their own urine, the Romans were able to lift stains and whiten their teeth thanks to the ammonia this bodily fluid contains. Thankfully, modern cosmetic dentistry is completely urine-free and leaves your breath much fresher than this ancient whitening treatment would.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">If You Want a Whiter Smile and Don\u2019t Care About Tooth Decay, See a Medieval Barber<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The medieval times were known for a range of cool things such as jousting tournaments and frightening woodcuts of werewolves and dragons, but their teeth whitening treatments left a lot to be desired. Medieval barbers handled their community\u2019s grooming, surgery, and dentistry, and they would whiten patient\u2019s smiles by roughing up their teeth with a file and treating them with nitric acid. While this would lift stains and whiten teeth, it did so by removing the outer layers of enamel, making smiles more vulnerable to injury and tooth decay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Luckily, barbers today leave surgery and dentistry to people with doctorates. If you feel that you\u2019d like a whiter, straighter, or better-shaped smile, consulting with your cosmetic dentist may help you find the appropriate treatment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">About the Author<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr. Brad Weiss earned his dental degree at Indiana University\u2019s School of Dentistry in Indianapolis and was there awarded the Dentsply Internation Merit Award for Prosthodontics. He is a member of the American Dental Association and a Fellow of the prestigious American College of Dentists. His office in Skokie, IL, offers general, restorative, emergency, and cosmetic dentistry. To schedule a cosmetic dental consultation, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/contact.html\">contact his office online<\/a> or dial <strong>(847) 864-0188<\/strong>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019ve ever thought that you\u2019d like a prettier smile, you\u2019re not alone. Ever since people figured out how to recognize their own reflections, they have sought ways to achieve more beautiful and attractive smiles. Ancient cultures used a variety of methods to achieve more visually pleasing grins, and while they could sometimes be successful, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-336","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>What Was Ancient Cosmetic Dentistry Like? | Dr. Brad Weiss<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"People have tried to pretty up their smiles for millennia. Here are some ancient cosmetic dental treatments to help you appreciate modern methods.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What Was Ancient Cosmetic Dentistry Like? | Dr. Brad Weiss\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"People have tried to pretty up their smiles for millennia. Here are some ancient cosmetic dental treatments to help you appreciate modern methods.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Brad Weiss DDS\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-05-13T21:58:28+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-06-05T22:02:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AdobeStock_101141241__1717624878_81210.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"drweiss\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"drweiss\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"drweiss\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0883bd41d7ae4c2fdae5ba71513f7a93\"},\"headline\":\"Did Ancient Cultures Have Cosmetic Dental Treatments?\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-05-13T21:58:28+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-06-05T22:02:11+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/\"},\"wordCount\":508,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AdobeStock_101141241__1717624878_81210.jpg\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/\",\"name\":\"What Was Ancient Cosmetic Dentistry Like? | Dr. Brad Weiss\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AdobeStock_101141241__1717624878_81210.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-05-13T21:58:28+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-06-05T22:02:11+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0883bd41d7ae4c2fdae5ba71513f7a93\"},\"description\":\"People have tried to pretty up their smiles for millennia. Here are some ancient cosmetic dental treatments to help you appreciate modern methods.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AdobeStock_101141241__1717624878_81210.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AdobeStock_101141241__1717624878_81210.jpg\",\"width\":800,\"height\":346},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Did Ancient Cultures Have Cosmetic Dental Treatments?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Brad Weiss DDS\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0883bd41d7ae4c2fdae5ba71513f7a93\",\"name\":\"drweiss\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/efe1cde374dd789d40d03e169af10c4d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/efe1cde374dd789d40d03e169af10c4d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"drweiss\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/author\/drweiss\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"What Was Ancient Cosmetic Dentistry Like? | Dr. Brad Weiss","description":"People have tried to pretty up their smiles for millennia. Here are some ancient cosmetic dental treatments to help you appreciate modern methods.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"What Was Ancient Cosmetic Dentistry Like? | Dr. Brad Weiss","og_description":"People have tried to pretty up their smiles for millennia. Here are some ancient cosmetic dental treatments to help you appreciate modern methods.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/","og_site_name":"Brad Weiss DDS","article_published_time":"2024-05-13T21:58:28+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-06-05T22:02:11+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AdobeStock_101141241__1717624878_81210.jpg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"drweiss","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"drweiss","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/"},"author":{"name":"drweiss","@id":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0883bd41d7ae4c2fdae5ba71513f7a93"},"headline":"Did Ancient Cultures Have Cosmetic Dental Treatments?","datePublished":"2024-05-13T21:58:28+00:00","dateModified":"2024-06-05T22:02:11+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/"},"wordCount":508,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AdobeStock_101141241__1717624878_81210.jpg","inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/","url":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/","name":"What Was Ancient Cosmetic Dentistry Like? | Dr. Brad Weiss","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AdobeStock_101141241__1717624878_81210.jpg","datePublished":"2024-05-13T21:58:28+00:00","dateModified":"2024-06-05T22:02:11+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0883bd41d7ae4c2fdae5ba71513f7a93"},"description":"People have tried to pretty up their smiles for millennia. Here are some ancient cosmetic dental treatments to help you appreciate modern methods.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AdobeStock_101141241__1717624878_81210.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AdobeStock_101141241__1717624878_81210.jpg","width":800,"height":346},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/ancient-cosmetic-dentistry\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Did Ancient Cultures Have Cosmetic Dental Treatments?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/","name":"Brad Weiss DDS","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0883bd41d7ae4c2fdae5ba71513f7a93","name":"drweiss","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/efe1cde374dd789d40d03e169af10c4d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/efe1cde374dd789d40d03e169af10c4d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"drweiss"},"url":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/author\/drweiss\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=336"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":338,"href":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336\/revisions\/338"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=336"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=336"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bradweissdds.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=336"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}