Eighteenth and nineteenth century dental restoration, treatment and consequences in a British nobleman

This paper examines unusual eighteenth and nineteenth century dental treatment and its consequences, in a nobleman excavated from beneath St. Nicholas' Church, Sevenoaks, Kent, UK in the early 1990s. This rare archaeological case exhibits erosion of dental enamel on the labial surface of all the anterior dentition. A programme of historical research suggests that this might be attributed to the application of an acid-based dental tincture or the use of an abrasive substance to whiten the teeth. Palliative treatment for the consequence of this application was prescribed by Dr Robert Blake of Dublin. Further, it bears witness to three dental restorations, two of gold and one tin. The two gold (foil) fillings are an occlusal in the upper-right second molar and a cervical on the labial surface of the upper left canine. The tin filling is an occlusal in the upper left second molar. Excavation of the carious tissue appears to have been undertaken using a spoon shaped implement.