美国博物馆展示了牙齿和牙医工具的历史

US Museum Shows History of Teeth and Dentist Tools

Most people do not look forward to going to the dentist. But they might actually enjoy visiting an American museum that explores the history of teeth and dentistry.

The Dr. Samuel D. Harris National Museum of Dentistry is at the University of Maryland in Baltimore. It was the world’s first college to train dentists. A man named G.V. Black was one of the founders¹ of modern U.S. dentistry in the 1800s.

Visitors to the museum can look at a reproduction of Black’s dentist office. When he treated patients, he had no electricity for light. So his office, like many others, had large windows. Chairs for patients often faced south to help dentists work by sunlight.

Patrick Cutter is a researcher at the museum.

“What we're looking at here is kind of an early idea of what a dentist office would have looked like. But most of the time a dentist would have actually just been a traveling dentist, so he would have went from town square to town square.”

With more than 40,000 items, the museum contains one of the largest dental² collections in the world. Visitors can see some of the tools used by early dentists to work on patients. Some of the old equipment looks more like torture³ devices⁴ than dental instruments.

Others shown seem fit for kings and queens. For example, Queen Victoria's dentist used instruments made of gold and pearls⁶.

The museum shows many examples of false teeth, along with explanations about the kinds of materials used to make them.

One of the most popular areas shows a set of false teeth once worn by America’s first president, George Washington. But the museum corrects a widely believed story that Washington’s false teeth were wooden. They were actually made of animal bone.

Historians⁷ believe the false teeth made it difficult for Washington to eat and speak. They say this is likely why his second inaugural⁸ speech contained just 135 words – the shortest in history.

Some early tools used to clean teeth were also made from animal parts, the museum’s Patrick Cutter explains.

“Some of the older toothbrushes that were actually made out of animal bone.”

The cleaning end of the brushes often came from the hair of cows or other animals. The museum also shows teeth from a mix of animals and notes how they are different from human teeth.

In addition, visitors can explore how teeth have long been used to solve mysteries and crimes. And, they can see the history of tooth replacement⁹ and learn about new technology that could grow replacement teeth.

One part of the museum, called Mouthpower, contains large toothbrushes and mouths. The models show how bacteria can damage the teeth and let people practice cleaning methods.

While visitors to this unusual museum might at times feel like they are in a dentist office, the experience is sure to be a lot more pleasant.

I’m Bryan Lynn.

Words in This Story

dentist – n. person whose job is to care for people's teeth

pearl⁵ – n. a hard, white, round object made inside the shell of an oyster¹⁰, used to make jewelry¹¹

inaugural – adj. happening as part of an official ceremony or celebration when someone (such as a newly elected official) begins an important job

 

1 founders   

n.创始人( founder的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He was one of the founders of the university's medical faculty. 他是该大学医学院的创建人之一。 来自辞典例句
• The founders of our religion made this a cornerstone of morality. 我们宗教的创始人把这看作是道德的基石。 来自辞典例句

2 dental   

adj.牙齿的，牙科的

参考例句：

• You can get free dental treatment.你可以得到免费的牙齿治疗。
• I had undergone a major dental operation.我经受了一次牙科大手术。

3 torture   

n.折磨；v.折磨，使痛苦；使苦恼，使为难

参考例句：

• No torture would make him speak.任何严刑拷打都不能使他开口。
• Through those long years of imprisonment and torture,he remained faithful and unyielding.在那些遭受囚禁和酷刑的漫长岁月里，他始终坚贞不屈。

4 devices   

n.设备；装置( device的名词复数 )；花招；（为实现某种目的的）计划；手段

参考例句：

• electrical labour-saving devices around the home 节省劳力的各种家用电器
• modern labour-saving devices such as washing machines and dishwashers 诸如洗衣机和洗碗机之类的现代化省力设备

5 pearl   

n.珍珠，珍珠母

参考例句：

• He bought his girlfriend a pearl necklace.他给他女朋友买了一条珍珠项链。
• The crane and the mother-of-pearl fight to death.鹬蚌相争。

6 pearls   

n.珍珠( pearl的名词复数 )；珍品；人造珍珠；珠状物

参考例句：

• a necklace of rubies intertwined with pearls 缠着珍珠的红宝石项链
• a string of pearls 一挂珍珠

7 historians   

n.历史学家，史学工作者( historian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Historians seem to have confused the chronology of these events. 历史学家好像把这些事件发生的年代顺序搞混了。
• Historians have concurred with each other in this view. 历史学家在这个观点上已取得一致意见。

8 inaugural   

adj.就职的；n.就职典礼

参考例句：

• We listened to the President's inaugural speech on the radio yesterday.昨天我们通过无线电听了总统的就职演说。
• Professor Pearson gave the inaugural lecture in the new lecture theatre.皮尔逊教授在新的阶梯讲堂发表了启用演说。

9 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

10 oyster   

n.牡蛎；沉默寡言的人

参考例句：

• I enjoy eating oyster; it's really delicious.我喜欢吃牡蛎，它味道真美。
• I find I fairly like eating when he finally persuades me to taste the oyster.当他最后说服我尝尝牡蛎时，我发现我相当喜欢吃。

11 jewelry   

n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝

参考例句：

• The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
• Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。